Breast cancer risk may be reduced by working outdoors —
Now, older women have one more reason to go out and soak up the sunshine! Long-term exposure to sunlight has been found to decrease the risk of breast cancer among women aged 50 years and above. The underlying reason may be increased amounts of Vitamin D that the body produces on exposure to sunlight.
Theses result emanated from a study conducted on 38,375 women under the age of 70 who had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Their occupational histories were compared with that of women of the same age who did not have breast cancer.
The comparison revealed that women who were exposed to sunlight as a part of their work, over many years, had lesser risk of breast cancer, as compared to their counterparts whose jobs did not involve exposure to sunlight.
It is a known fact that our bodies produce vitamin D on exposure to sunlight, especially between 10 am to 3pm. This vitamin D has been found to promote bone health, and overall well-being. Vitamin D is also a good contributor to the immune health, and helps prevent infection and cancer. People who have been diagnosed with cancer, have been found to have low levels of vitamin D.
An optimum level of vitamin D is crucial for good health and well-being, however, modern lifestyle and the risk of skin cancer, keeps the population inside their houses and workplaces, away from the exposure to sunlight. However, the study findings imply that if we wish to lower the risk of breast cancer, we need to adopt certain lifestyle measures that allow us to soak-up the sun.
Sources: Julie Elbaek Pedersen, Katrine Strandberg-Larsen, Michael Andersson, Johnni Hansen. Occupational exposure to solar ultraviolet B radiation and risk of subtypes of breast cancer in Danish women. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 2021; oemed-2020-107125 DOI: 10.1136/oemed-2020-107125
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