Your Skin Type Changes the RULES of Sunlight

0:00 Sunlight's not just about vitamin D.

0:02 It's one of the biggest levers for your energy,

0:04 hormones, immune health, and longevity.

0:06 But almost no one's being taught how to get it right.

0:10 Health expert Brian Johnson says, "Avoid the sun.

0:13 It causes DNA damage and premature aging." Dr.

0:16 Paul Saladino says you need more of it.

0:20 But this right here changes things.

0:22 If you're dark-kinned in a northern city or pale

0:25 skinned in a zone with plenty of sun,

0:27 one-sizefits-all sun advice could be wrecking your health.

0:29 So, I'm going to break things down in this video.

0:32 You'll learn why the right dose of light is so critical,

0:35 why both your biology and even your culture might be working against you

0:39 and the practical steps to ensure your body gets exactly what it needs.

0:43 But before we can get into the strategies

0:45 you need to fix your sunlight exposure,

0:48 we need to talk about how bad the problem really is.

0:51 So, let's go back to the early 1900s before antibiotics and advanced imaging.

0:56 Patients battling infections, tuberculosis,

0:58 and non-healing wounds weren't making progress indoors.

1:01 But when exposed to sunlight, even the sickest patients began to recover.

1:07 Hospitals in Europe started building outdoor

1:09 treatment terraces for this exact reason.

1:12 And in Switzerland, Dr.

1:14 August Rolier used heliootherapy targeted

1:17 sunlight treatment with massive success.

1:19 Around the same time, a Danish physician named Neils Ryberg Finson

1:23 was pioneering a different type of approach.

1:26 Concentrated light therapy for patients suffering from lupus vulgaras,

1:30 a painful form of tuberculosis that attacks the skin.

1:33 His work was so groundbreaking that he

1:36 was awarded the 1903 Nobel Prize in medicine.

1:38 Vincson developed special lamps that focused the healing

1:41 rays of light directly onto diseased skin,

1:44 allowing patients to recover when no other treatments were effective.

1:47 And what made his discovery even more powerful

1:49 was that it wasn't a drug or surgery.

1:52 It was simply the right kind of light.

1:54 His work cemented the idea that light itself could and should be medicine.

1:59 That's why this modern problem is so dangerous.

2:03 Most people are going from building to cars

2:06 to building to car to another building.

2:09 The sun, it's treated like an optional bonus.

2:11 I I take my 2,000 IUs of vitamin D a day.

2:15 I'm good.

2:16 I'm good.

2:16 Right.

2:17 No, no, no, no, no, no.

2:20 Sunlight isn't optional.

2:22 It's foundational.

2:23 And here's why.

2:25 Let's talk about the not two, but three essential sun windows.

2:29 Now, if you watch health content,

2:31 like the video I made about 37 health habits I wish I knew in my 20s,

2:35 I talked about morning light.

2:36 It's your biological on switch.

2:38 When it hits your eyes early in the day,

2:40 it tells your brain to release cortisol,

2:42 the hormone that makes you feel awake and alert.

2:46 That same cue also starts a 14-hour timer for melatonin,

2:49 your sleep hormone, to rise later in the evening.

2:52 You miss that cue and your whole rhythm shifts,

2:55 making it harder to sleep and throwing off your energy, mood, and metabolism.

2:59 You probably knew about morning sun, but this window right here is going to play

3:03 an even bigger role in our little story about sunlight.

3:06 You'll hear just get sun in the morning and evening.

3:09 That's all you need.

3:10 Well, that's great for your circadian rhythm, but kind of useless for vitamin D.

3:15 Vitamin D is made when UVB light hits your skin.

3:18 And UVB shows up in strength when the sun is high overhead.

3:22 Skip that midday window and you skip your main chance

3:25 to stock up on a nutrient that's critical for immunity,

3:29 bone health, and hormone balance.

3:31 Exactly how much midday sun you need depends on your skin type,

3:35 where you live, and the time of year.

3:38 Near the equator, say Nigeria, UVB stretches from 9:00 a.m.

3:41 to 5:00 p.m.

3:43 all year long.

3:44 Mid- latatitude cities like Austin, Texas,

3:46 UVB is long and strong in summer and shorter in winter.

3:51 Farther north like London, you get just a couple hours of UVB in autumn.

3:56 And deep in winter, it might disappear almost completely.

3:59 Think of it this way.

4:00 The higher the sun climbs,

4:02 the more direct its path and the more UVB hits your skin.

4:05 Lower angles means more filtering and a weaker hit of vitamin D.

4:09 We'll go deeper on your personal dose in a minute, but for now, know this.

4:14 Midday isn't optional if you want to make vitamin D.

4:17 It's essential.

4:17 Now, evening lights, low in UV and rich in red and near infrared wavelengths.

4:22 It tells your body, "Day is ending.

4:25 Start winding down." This reinforces melatonin release and protects your sleep.

4:29 But again, it's not making vitamin D.

4:32 And that's the mistake most people make.

4:34 You might grab a quick walk in the morning and think, "Cool,

4:37 I'm set for the day." But you totally skip the vitamin D window.

4:41 or you turn at noon and skip morning light.

4:44 Well, now your sleep might be compromised because you

4:47 never hit that clock reset switch in the morning.

4:49 And that's what you really have to understand with sunlight.

4:52 It isn't just one flavor of light.

4:54 It's a full cocktail.

4:55 Miss one of these windows and you're running on partial power.

4:59 But hit all three and you're finally aligned

5:02 with the light your biology evolved to expect.

5:05 Midday UVB, that's your vitamin D production.

5:07 The stuff your immune system, hormones, and bones can't live without.

5:11 Morning blue and green light.

5:13 That's your body's clock setter.

5:14 It locks in your rhythm, boosts alertness, and even lifts your mood.

5:18 And then you've got red and near infrared light.

5:21 Heavy in the mornings and evenings.

5:23 That's repair mode.

5:24 Penetrates deep into your tissues,

5:26 recharges your mitochondria, and helps your body recover.

5:29 Easy for the unemployed.

5:31 Who has time for all that sun?

5:34 Well, Scott, how many times were we in the hospital this year?

5:39 Just just nine times.

5:43 16 times.

5:47 Shut up.

5:52 I didn't say a thing.

5:53 But before we get into some deeper rooted reasons it can be so

5:56 hard to get the right amount of sunlight and what to do about it,

5:59 I want to give you an easy fix so

6:01 you stop wasting the benefits that you are getting.

6:04 Most people wreck the cycle.

6:06 Blue light at night.

6:07 Your brain doesn't care if the light comes from the sun or your phone.

6:11 Blue light looks like midday.

6:12 Hit yourself with it at 9:00 p.m.

6:14 and your brain still thinks it's go time.

6:17 Melatonin shuts down, sleep quality tanks,

6:19 recovery slows, hormones dip, immunity takes a hit,

6:22 and the less natural sunlight you got in the day,

6:25 the more sensitive you are to disruption at night.

6:27 This doesn't mean you got to live in darkness.

6:30 Just manage the type of light you're exposed to.

6:32 Use blue blocking glasses after sunset.

6:34 Install red and amber bulbs in the evening.

6:36 Since there is no blue, it won't mess with melatonin.

6:39 Be mindful of screens at night.

6:40 You can cut screen time where you can or use a red filter.

6:44 Now, I say this, but I'm not perfect.

6:46 Me and my girlfriend have a ritual

6:48 of playing Jin and watching Dexter in the evening.

6:51 Surprise,[ __] Blue light is definitely there,

6:54 but at least we've got some safeguards.

6:57 The point isn't perfection.

6:58 It's doing your best to protect your rhythm so you can sleep,

7:02 recover, and perform where you need to.

7:04 So, you need the sun.

7:06 That's clear now.

7:07 But if that's the case,

7:08 then why is Brian Johnson treating sunlight like poison while

7:11 Paul Saladino is slow roasting his organs shirtless in Costa Rica?

7:15 The funny thing is, they're both right.

7:17 And the secret is in their skin, or more specifically, their melanin.

7:23 Melanin is the pigment that gives your skin its color,

7:26 but it's also like built-in sunglasses.

7:28 It blocks more UVB before it can trigger vitamin D production.

7:32 So yes, people with high melanin make vitamin D.

7:35 It just takes longer.

7:37 And if your ancestors evolved under strong equatorial sun,

7:40 your biology expects a high level of UVB year round.

7:44 It's like running a car built for premium fuel on regular gas.

7:48 It'll still run, but never at the level it was designed for.

7:52 So this is the Fitzpatrick scale.

7:54 What would you say your skin type is?

7:57 From type one, pale and burns easily, to type six, dark and rarely burns.

8:02 If you're a type four to six, you might need three to six times more sun to make

8:07 the same vitamin D as someone lighter, type 1 to three.

8:10 And if it's winter or you live somewhere cloudy, the gap widens.

8:14 I once paid for a 23 and me test only to find out I'm 99.2% Nigerian.

8:20 Total waste of money, but useful in one sense.

8:23 These tests can show you whether your biology was shaped under equatorial sun,

8:27 softer northern light, or a mix of both.

8:30 And that matters because your melanin and vitamin

8:32 D needs might not look like someone else's.

8:35 Now, my parents were both born in Ptacrate, Nigeria.

8:39 Hot, sunny, equatorial.

8:40 I live in California now.

8:41 Not quite the same, but at least we get a real summer.

8:45 But imagine, imagine if my mom moved to London instead.

8:50 Wait, what's going on?

8:52 I'mwami, Nigerian by blood, but living in London.

8:55 So guess what?

8:56 It's cold and gray out here.

8:59 These paintings are the only color I have in my life.

9:03 And it's October, so man's getting light sun.

9:05 Light means a little.

9:06 Now, because of that, I'm part of the nearly 40% of black

9:09 and brown folks in the UK who ain't got enough vitamin D.

9:12 Why?

9:12 Cuz I'm built for blazing African sun.

9:15 I'm stuck under this dead gray British

9:17 sky wondering why I'm knocking all the time.

9:23 in it.

9:24 There, I said it.

9:25 Move on.

9:26 That's the mismatch.

9:27 Here's a chart comparing the average UVB in Nigeria,

9:31 London, New York, California, and Australia.

9:33 Near the equator, UVB stays high pretty much year round.

9:37 And in London from October to March, if you have more melanin,

9:40 your skin's making really low amounts of vitamin D, even at noon.

9:44 In Australia, summer UV is brutally strong,

9:47 which is why lighterkinned people there face

9:49 the highest melanoma rates in the world.

9:51 Soqame is walking around in a high melanin body built for the equator,

9:56 stuck in a city with no overhead sun,

9:58 while lighterkinned folks in Australia are battling the opposite mismatch.

10:02 Either way, rules the same.

10:04 When your light environment doesn't match your biology, something can break.

10:09 Food helps, supplements help,

10:10 but nothing replaces the full spectrum light your system evolved to run on.

10:15 And that's just one half of the equation.

10:17 Because sometimes it's not the weather that's keeping us inside.

10:20 Sometimes it's culture.

10:22 It's messaging.

10:22 It's that little voice inside that says,

10:25 "Don't get too dark." So, let's talk about colorism.

10:30 More than $400 million worth of skin whitening

10:33 products is sold each year in India alone.

10:35 Eight out of 10 women in Nigeria use skin lightening products.

10:39 It's the world's highest percentage skin lightening market in Asia Pacific alone

10:44 is valued at over 13 billion US in many cultures across Africa,

10:48 Latin America, Asia, and diaspora communities worldwide.

10:51 Lighter skin is still seen as more desirable.

10:54 To Nigeria now though, where more than 3/4 of people use skin lightening creams.

10:59 They're commonly known as bleaching creams.

11:01 It's the country with the highest use in Africa, according to the WHO.

11:06 In 2023, Nigeria's food and drugs regulator

11:08 declared a state of emergency over the products.

11:11 It's the residue of colonial beauty standards, cast systems,

11:15 and class divisions, all wrapped up in one neatly toxic message.

11:19 There is better.

11:21 And that belief doesn't just shape ideals.

11:24 It shapes behavior.

11:25 You'll see girls wearing jackets in summer to avoid

11:28 getting darker and teens picking indoor gyms versus outdoor sports.

11:32 Parents saying stay in the shade not for safety but for appearances.

11:37 And behind it, a global skin lightening

11:40 industry projected to reach 12 billion by 2026.

11:44 Creams, pills, injectables, all promising a brighter, cleaner,

11:48 more beautiful look at the cost of actual health.

11:53 And it's a tragedy because the same communities who need the sun

11:57 the most are being told explicitly or implicitly to avoid it.

12:01 So you end up with darkerkinned people in low UV

12:05 environments avoiding the very thing their bodies are wired to need.

12:08 And this just isn't a northern city problem.

12:11 In Nigeria, India, Brazil, places with yearround UVB,

12:15 cultural sun avoidance can erase that geographic advantage.

12:18 You can live on the equator and still wind up

12:21 deficient if you spend most of your time in the shade,

12:25 under a hat, or indoors because of comments about your skin tone.

12:28 Vitamin D deficiency off the charts.

12:31 Fatigue, hormone imbalances, immune issues, all climbing.

12:34 Not from bad habits,

12:36 but from a system of social conditioning layered over biology.

12:40 And unless you name all three, biology,

12:43 geography, and culture, you're missing the real story.

12:47 Brilliant.

12:47 So man's got a body made for the tropics.

12:49 I'm out here living in a fog and I'm shook

12:52 to step outside cuz auntie is saying you are getting too black.

12:57 __] sake man.

12:58 I get it's frustrating butqwame it gets worse because for black

13:03 and brown folks in low UV regions the danger is deficiency.

13:06 But for paler folks who ended up

13:09 in high UV places like Australia and South Africa,

13:12 the mismatch runs the other way.

13:14 Their lighter skin evolved in cloudy northern climates,

13:17 not under equatorial sun.

13:18 And when you drop them into that environment, the DNA damage can add up fast.

13:23 That's why melanoma rates in Australia are amongst

13:26 the highest in the world with European populations.

13:29 Not because they're reckless,

13:30 but because their biology wasn't built for that level of UV.

13:34 Every time someone hears get more sun,

13:36 there's a voice in their head or an actual person yelling.

13:40 Ever heard of skin cancer?

13:42 Yes, Scott.

13:43 Yes.

13:44 But this is what we're missing.

13:46 The risk depends on your skin and your environment.

13:50 Melanin is your body's natural sunblock.

13:53 It absorbs UV before it can damage your DNA.

13:56 More melanin means fewer mutations,

13:58 which is why melanoma is rare in darker skin.

14:01 Your skin's already doing what sunscreen tries to do.

14:04 So, with darker skin, realize that if you use sunscreen,

14:08 you're making it that much harder for your body to synthesize vitamin D.

14:12 But here's what you should pay attention to.

14:15 Acroontigenous melanoma shows up where melanin offers no protection.

14:19 The palms, soles, nail beds.

14:22 That's why it's dangerous.

14:23 Bob Marley died from it.

14:25 It started in his toe and by the time anyone caught it, it already spread.

14:30 It's most common later in life, but worth keeping an eye on at any age.

14:35 Doctors use the ABCDE E of melanoma as a rule of thumb.

14:40 Asymmetry.

14:40 One half looks different than the other.

14:44 Border: irregular or jagged edges.

14:46 Color: dark, uneven, or changing.

14:49 Diameter: larger than a pencil eraser.

14:53 And evolving, new, growing, or changing.

14:56 If you notice anything like this on your palms,

14:59 soles, or nail beds, don't let your doctor dismiss it.

15:02 Early detection matters.

15:03 Dermatologist Aday Adamson has been sounding the alarm on this for years.

15:08 Go follow him.

15:10 He breaks it down brilliantly.

15:12 Now, if you're pale, burn easily, and have a family history.

15:16 Yes, manage your UV exposure, build it gradually,

15:19 listen to your skin, use shade when needed.

15:22 SPF is useful, but it's not a substitute for understanding your biology.

15:26 Here's the trade-off.

15:27 Lighter skin, more likely to get melanoma, but likely to survive it.

15:32 and darker skin.

15:33 Lower melanoma rates but higher death rates often because they're caught later.

15:39 So checks matter.

15:40 Now sun causes cancer makes headlines.

15:43 But what's the fuller picture?

15:46 Because when you're responsible with exposure, the sun's your friend.

15:50 Smart, non-burning sun exposure that keeps vitamin D levels

15:53 at a healthy range is observationally linked to lower colon,

15:57 breast, and prostate cancer risk.

15:59 Correlation isn't causation.

16:00 But the signal's there.

16:02 So ask yourself, are you really protecting your health by dodging the sun?

16:08 Or are you just trading one risk for another?

16:11 Hold on.

16:12 So what you're telling me is I'm built for the sun.

16:15 Yeah, man.

16:15 Scared to use it, risking bad sleep, weak bones, low energy,

16:19 all to dodge some cancer I weren't even likely to get.

16:23 Love that for me.

16:24 And that's the problem because the sunlight story we've been

16:27 told is one sizefits-all when the real story is about trade-offs.

16:31 It's not whether sun is good or sun is bad.

16:35 It's about whether your skin, your environment,

16:38 and your habits are aligned with the light your biology expects.

16:42 Because if they're not, you'll end up on one side of the imbalance or the other.

16:47 And either one could wreck your health, just in different ways.

16:50 So, now that you know your skin type, your environment, and your behavior,

16:55 it's time to cover the four things you could actually do about it.

16:58 Most people are just guessing with sunlight.

17:00 What was the UV index?

17:01 Did you actually make vitamin D or just get some fresh air?

17:04 This is where the free UV tracking apps come in.

17:08 UV index is solid.

17:09 And I also started using the free sunday app.

17:12 It pulls real-time UV data based on your exact

17:16 location and combines that with your Fitzpatrick's

17:18 skin type to tell you if you should be in the sun and when to potentially stop.

17:23 It also has a clever feature.

17:25 It factors in how much skin you've got exposed.

17:28 So, are you nude, minimal wear?

17:30 Are you wearing light clothes, moderate or heavy?

17:33 That matters because clothing blocks UVB, the wavelength that makes vitamin D.

17:38 A light shirt might cut production by 50% or more.

17:42 long sleeves and pants, even higher.

17:44 If most of your skin's covered,

17:46 you'll need a lot more time outside to hit the same

17:49 vitamin D dose as someone in a tank top and shorts.

17:51 So, when you open the app, you'll see your UV index right now,

17:55 whether there's enough UVB to make vitamin D,

17:58 and your ideal time in the sun based on your skin

18:01 type and clothing before hitting the sweet spot or burning.

18:04 Actually, this will be pretty fun.

18:06 Comment where you're located and your UV this afternoon.

18:09 It's good for all of us to understand the type of UV we're dealing with.

18:13 And if you're curious about UV and other cities across the globe,

18:16 the UV index app allows you to change your location and check.

18:20 So today app says got enough UV between 11:37 and 1244.

18:24 But next week we got no sun with a peak UV of two.

18:29 Save.

18:30 I'll just go outside.

18:31 Hope the neighbors don't call the feds again.

18:35 Well, maybe you don't do all of that, but rule of thumb,

18:38 UVB is strongest when the sun's at its highest,

18:41 and that's usually between 10:00 a.m.

18:42 to 2 p.m.

18:43 in most places.

18:44 What you're looking for is a UV index of 3 or higher.

18:48 Now, outside of that UVB window we talked about,

18:50 especially in the early morning or late afternoon, you're mostly getting UVA.

18:54 Great for mood and circadian rhythm, but not necessarily for vitamin D.

18:59 Think of Sunday like a weather app for your mitochondria.

19:02 Use it for the numbers, then let your body give you the feedback.

19:06 If you feel some subtle skin tightening or pre-burn texture, that's your cap.

19:10 Cover up or go step in some shade, dog.

19:13 We spent decades avoiding the sun,

19:15 and now we need to learn to meet it with a level of wisdom.

19:19 Man, say less.

19:19 I'm tracking sunlight now.

19:21 Next week, I'll be tracking every breath, sort on sarcastic comment.

19:26 Standardame, I get it.

19:27 And to you at home, I know it seems like a lot,

19:30 but there's something else that we need to track

19:32 if we want to have real ownership of our health.

19:34 Because what if your light habits have been off for years?

19:37 What if you need more than just a daily reminder?

19:40 Well, that's when it's time to check under the hood.

19:43 Everything we've covered sounds great in theory,

19:45 but how do you know if your light habits are actually working?

19:47 This isn't like drinking a cup of coffee or sticking a zen in your mouth.

19:51 You won't feel vitamin D deficiency overnight.

19:53 You won't instantly notice disrupted

19:55 melatonin or sluggish mitochondrial signaling.

19:57 What you will notice is fatigue that doesn't lift, mood swings, bad sleep,

20:01 brain fog, and unless you test, you'll never connect the dots back to sunlight.

20:06 That's where testing comes in.

20:07 If you go to your doctor, you can get your labs done and you

20:11 can request to get your vitamin D levels checked.

20:13 But to put the power back in your hands,

20:15 I suggest using either 100 health or Merrick Health.

20:18 Both are services I've used and vetted.

20:20 100 Health is more affordable,

20:21 giving you two comprehensive lab panels and access to an app

20:24 that puts all of your health data in one place,

20:27 even the ones from your wearables.

20:28 And after you get your tests done,

20:30 you're going to get supplement and lifestyle adjustments based on your results.

20:34 America's a bit more expensive, but you can get paired with a patient

20:37 care coordinator that can interpret your labs with you.

20:40 You'll also get supplement, lifestyle,

20:41 and potentially pharmaceutical suggestions if you're a candidate.

20:44 You'll test a ton of labs, vitamin D levels,

20:47 hormones like testosterone and cortisol, and hundreds more.

20:49 The goal is to get your labs to an optimal range rather than just feeling okay.

20:55 Both of these are a worthwhile investment to your health.

20:58 But now, you'll be working from data instead of guesswork.

21:01 Sunlight's medicine, and like any medicine, the right dose matters.

21:05 I'll drop links to both of these companies in the description below.

21:08 So, let's say you do get your blood work back and yeah,

21:12 you're low, maybe even deficient.

21:13 You tracked your light, you've seen the numbers.

21:17 Now, what?

21:18 Well, the obvious next step, supplements.

21:21 And to be clear, it's not a bad thing.

21:23 If you're already low, a high quality D3 supplement can bring your levels

21:27 back to a healthy range faster than sunlight alone.

21:29 Especially in winter, if you work indoors, or if your UVB window is short.

21:33 But here's where we get it wrong.

21:35 A supplement's not a replacement for sunlight.

21:37 Sunlight's a full spectrum event.

21:39 Yeah, it gives you vitamin D,

21:41 but it also triggers nitric oxide for heart health,

21:44 boost serotonin for your mood, sinks your circadian rhythm for your sleep,

21:48 and does dozens of other things a pill just can't do.

21:52 That said, when your tank's empty, a pill can be life-saving.

21:55 Just know how to get the most from it.

21:58 First, if you're taking a big dose,

22:00 let's say 10 to 20,000 IUs per day, consider spreading it through your day.

22:04 Mega dosing all at once can spike blood levels,

22:06 and that doesn't always mean better absorption.

22:08 And if you can, try to take it with fat.

22:12 Think eggs, salmon, avocado, or olive oil.

22:15 Vitamin D is fat soluble,

22:16 so you'll absorb far more than if you take it on an empty stomach.

22:19 Now, when your vitamin D levels rise, your body absorbs more calcium from food.

22:24 That's great, but only if the calcium ends up where it should.

22:28 That's why bringing magnesium helps convert vitamin D to its active form.

22:32 And vitamin K2 acts like traffic control,

22:34 directing calcium into your bones and teeth instead of letting it

22:37 pile up in your arteries where it can cause some trouble.

22:40 By the way, I made a super detailed video

22:42 on why your bones are weak and how to strengthen them.

22:44 It's long and goes deep.

22:46 Long and goes deep.

22:48 Mate, this is YouTube, not late night channel for now.

22:51 I know you want that subscription, but this ain't the way to do it, man.

22:57 Have some selfrespect.

22:58 That's not what I mean.

23:00 The video is long and it does go deep into the topic of building bone density.

23:04 So, I'd suggest you guys check it out and if you haven't,

23:08 maybe consider subscribing to the channel.

23:09 And yes, supplement when you need to, especially

23:12 if your levels are low or if it's winter.

23:14 But don't mistake the backup plan for the real thing.

23:18 Sunlight's a full spectrum signal.

23:20 Supplements are only one ingredient.

23:22 Your skin even has a built-in off switch.

23:25 Once you've made enough vitamin D, production self-limits, whereas pills don't.

23:29 Think of sunlight as being a full album, which is mastered by nature.

23:34 And vitamin D supplements are just one track.

23:36 That's why I still track my light like I track my training.

23:39 The sunday or UVB tracker apps are my go-to

23:42 so I'm not guessing whether I'm getting enough UVB.

23:45 Vitamin D supplementation's useful, sometimes essential,

23:48 but not the same as catching the real thing in the wild.

23:51 Your body doesn't run on 2,000 IUs a day.

23:54 runs on light.

23:55 So what happens when that light just isn't there?

23:58 You're in London likewame or New York City in winter

24:02 or stuck under fluorescent hell for 8 hours a day.

24:05 You can't always move to the tropics, but you can bring parts of it to you.

24:10 That's where red and near infrared light comes in.

24:13 In the 600 to 1,000 nmter range, red light penetrates deep into tissues,

24:19 activates mitochondria, and boosts repair.

24:21 Athletes use it for recovery, dermatologists for skin,

24:24 and biohackers for just about everything.

24:27 The thing is, most people stop at red.

24:30 And to be fair, there's a reason.

24:32 Clinically, red light's been shown to boost muscle recovery,

24:36 speed up wound healing,

24:37 reduce inflammation, improve skin quality, and even help with joint pain.

24:40 It's not hype.

24:42 There's solid evidence behind it.

24:44 Red is great for repair, but without UVB,

24:47 you're not triggering the full vitamin D cascade your body expects.

24:50 That cascade also drives nitric oxide release,

24:53 immune regulation, and hormone signaling.

24:55 So, while red light can mimic sunrise and sunset benefits,

24:59 it can't refill your vitamin D tank.

25:02 For that, you still need UVB from the sun or a targeted device.

25:06 If you're stuck in a dark climate,

25:09 have darker skin, or struggle to get consistent sun,

25:12 this might be the only way to mimic full spectrum sun

25:15 exposure year round without hopping on a flight to the equator.

25:18 And that's not just for people with darker skin.

25:21 Pale folks make vitamin D faster,

25:22 but if you're indoors a lot or living at a high latitude,

25:26 you still might not be getting enough UVB to keep levels steady.

25:30 The need is universal.

25:31 The dose just changes.

25:32 That's where a newer generation of light devices comes in.

25:36 EMR Techch makes two standouts that I've tested.

25:38 The Krypton 1612, which I love, and the Ultron, which is a bit overkill.

25:43 both combine deep penetrating red light and targeted UVB,

25:47 meaning you're not just triggering repair,

25:49 you're supporting vitamin D production in ways other devices can't.

25:52 And if you're interested, I've made them available at the Strong Human store,

25:56 so you can get the same exact models I use at a pretty solid discount.

25:59 So, go check it out.

26:01 Now, I'm not saying you should go fry

26:03 yourself in your living room with these tools.

26:05 They still require moderation and strategy,

26:07 but for someone like bro, I'm built for equatorial sunlight.

26:11 It's either this or wait till July to feel human again.

26:16 London gave me street labs depression and this box

26:18 might be the only thing keep me in the game.

26:20 And I'd like to say this to all you big business owners, hospitals,

26:24 offices, anywhere employees are forced to be indoors for long periods of time.

26:28 This would be a great investment for the health

26:30 of all the people that work for you.

26:32 Imagine employees able to take a quick break and if it's not bright outside,

26:35 they can go to the recovery room and get a solid dose of red UVA and UVB light.

26:40 It's worth the investment.

26:41 This isn't just a perk.

26:43 It's good business.

26:45 Employees who get more healthy light exposure tend to sleep better,

26:48 have stronger immune systems, and take fewer sick days.

26:51 Mood and energy go up, and so does productivity.

26:54 There's research showing vitamin D sufficiency is

26:56 linked to lower rates of respiratory illness,

26:59 which means less downtime for your team.

27:01 So, yeah, it's a wellness investment,

27:03 but it's also a performance upgrade for your whole company.

27:06 Because whether you're a type one who fries if they go out

27:09 in midday or a type six who can nap in noon sun,

27:12 your biology still runs on that same ancient light recipe.

27:16 If there's one thing I hope you take from this video, it's this.

27:20 Sunlight isn't optional.

27:21 It's foundational.

27:22 It's not just about getting a tan or chasing

27:25 aesthetics or even topping up your vitamin D.

27:27 It's about aligning with the light

27:29 your biology expects so you can feel energized,

27:32 focused, and resilient and whole.

27:34 And listen, vitamin D is only one chapter in the sunlight story.

27:37 That same light triggers nitric oxide for heart health, serotonin for mood,

27:41 melatonin for sleep, and dozens of other cascades we're still discovering.

27:45 You can't bottle that, download it, or fake it with a pill.

27:49 Whether you're melanin rich in a cloudy city

27:51 or fair skinned burning at the sight of summer, this isn't about fear.

27:56 It's about finding your personal dose.

27:58 Your skin, your location, your ancestry, all shape how you interact with light.

28:04 The need for light is universal.

28:06 So step outside, use your tools, know your context,

28:09 meet your body where it's been trying to take you all along.

28:13 You weren't built for life indoors.

28:15 You were built for the sun.

28:16 And yeah, for some of us,

28:18 that means braving the midday window instead of hiding in the shade

28:22 like a vampire because that's when the real magic happens.

28:25 So I'm getting better sunlight.

28:27 I fixed me sleep.

28:29 And apparently I've added 5 years to me life expectancy.

28:33 Oh well, I'm still stiffer than the queen's upper lip.

28:37 Now, if you two move like a total on roller blades and creek

28:40 like your joints are forged in the blitz, I got just a ting.

28:43 Click the next video all about floor training.

28:46 You know, ropes, clubs, kettle bells, movement that don't feel like punishment.

28:50 Will it make us move like warriors?

28:52 Doubt it.

28:53 But at least we'll be able to tie our shoes without having to call the NHS.

28:58 See you there.

28:59 Yeah.