Healing Power of the Sun
I promised to do a synopsis of the latest book I read, Healing Power of the Sun by Richard Hobday, PhD. I picked up this book after listening to a wellness podcast many months ago in which the guest practitioner relayed numerous accounts of seriously ill patients (who had tried everything) recovering after implementing intentional sunlight therapy. These stories intrigued me.
Moreover, the concept of sunlight as a healing agent captivated me- though I had never heard this theory asserted so clinically, it instantly made perfect sense. While I'm certainly no proponent of sun-worship, there is a reason people from time immemorial have assigned godlike attributes to the single energetic source of life on this planet- our sun.
The ancients knew full well the power of its rays- to comfort and warm us, nourish our crops, and heal our maladies. The real issue is that they worshipped the creation rather than the creator, but their appraisal of sunlight was not incorrect.
Herein lies a fact that modernity must simply accept as truth. Given our advances in science, we may have obtained a layer of knowledge perviously unknown, but are no wiser for it. Modern researchers constantly extrapolate medical advice from isolated fragments of discovery. Professing themselves to be wise, they become fools- foisting unproven, theoretical treatments on the vulnerable and unsuspecting public. One need look no further than the ill-informed response to the C-vd pandemic. Whether or not Big Pharma had ulterior motives in fast-tracking their dangerous injections is a topic for a different day. The fact remains, they pushed a hypothetical intervention that, years later, has been proven to do significantly more harm than good.
By contrast, ancient cultures passed down anecdotal wisdom from one generation to the next. Perhaps they did not have the "scientific studies" to account for medical success. But few studies in the modern era are untainted by special interests, and most of the research produced is either grossly unscientific or incredibly biased, especially if the results point away from financially lucrative product developments. In other words, natural wellness- things like nutrition, plant medicine, exercise and positive thinking- don't make for great profits. If a layman can soothe his digestion with healthy meals and a nip of chamomile tea, how can they get rich off selling him medicine?
The truth is, when it comes to traditional healing practices, nearly all evidence is anecdotal. A child would learn from his mother how to gather healing herbs, apply poultices, blend herbal teas and implement natural cures of all kinds. Well known among those cures was solar therapy. In fact, sunlight was regularly implemented as a healing modality well into the modern era- until the 1950's when antibiotics entered the scene.
But let me backtrack on the timeline a little bit- lets go back to the Industrial revolution and the explosive growth of European cities. If you haven't read Upton Sinclair's The Jungle, you should - or perhaps there is a cinematic rendition you can watch. It paints a harrowing vision of the abysmal living and working conditions of the manufacturing era. Or go back further to 1837 when Charles Dickens wrote Oliver Twist- there are countless depictions of the unhealthy conditions of the labor class. In short, sunless living, factory smog, and crowded, unsanitary conditions all led to a disease epidemic that nearly rivaled the Bubonic plague. The difference was, these diseases were not contagious- they were caused by lack of fresh air and sun.
The great Florence Nightingale (among others) fought hard against such foul conditions which were also prevalent in hospitals of the time. She understood the importance of fresh air and sunlight for sanitation, wound healing, and revitalizing wounded soldiers' constitution. Her passionate campaigns to inject architecture with natural light and operable windows led to a resurrection of sunlight therapy that lasted several generations.
Fast forward to the age of antibiotics, which happened to coincide with the rise of commercial office buildings. Yet again, man discarded the wisdom of the ancients for a modernistic view. No longer was sunlight considered adequately therapeutic with the advent of pharmaceuticals. A "pill for every ill" quickly became the rallying cry.
Today, sunlight has been nothing short of demonized by the priests of modern science. After thousands of years proving otherwise, we are told (definitively) that the source of all life- the sun- is trying to kill us. Despite the inarguable fact that sunlight kills bacteria and infectious organisms, we were told to stay indoors during Covid.
Despite innumerable historic accounts of chronically ill patients experience a complete reversal of symptoms after therapeutically dosed sun exposure, despite studies directly relating lack of sunlight to debilitating disease- we are told to hide from it's antibacterial, antiviral, healing rays.
They tell us the sun causes cancer, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Malignant melanoma has been blamed on sunshine when most cases appear on people with zero sun exposure. We are told to slather dangerous chemical on our skin in an effort to block harmful rays, when the chemicals themselves have not been proven safe. In fact, many ingredients in sunscreen are showing significant links to cancer, especially in those who apply it to their skin religiously.
In sum, this book lays out the wax & wane of humankind's attitude towards the sun, particularly in the modern era. Author Richard Hobday writes, "In 1903 the Nobel prize for Medicine was awarded to a sunlight therapist... but during the latter part of teh 20th century the sun's rays have fallen from favor to such an extent that sunbathing is being actively discouraged. There can have been few more complete reversals in medical thinking." p 160.
The fact is that exposure to sunlight (which causes our body to manufacture an essential hormone for life, Vitamin D) not only benefits our health, but it crucial to the normal functions of ur body in a myriad of ways. The following is an excellent, though not an exhaustive list:
Vit D is essential for the growth and maturation of cells
Vit D has anti-cancer properties
Vit D inhibits growth of malignant melanoma
Vit D positively influences the immune system- so much so that it is implicated in all kinds of disease prevention: breast cancer, colon cancer, multiple sclerosis, osteoporosis, coronary heart disease, stroke
Vit D regulates the level of calcium in the blood - calcium in turn aids nerve impulse transmission and muscle contraction (nervous system)
Vit D positively impacts bone density
Vit D/ sunight helps reverse tooth decay
Vit D prevents rickets and osteomalacia
Controlled doses of sunlight has been used as wound antiseptic, on varicose ulcers, septic abcesses and anaemia
Sunlight exposure in cooler temperatures speeds up metabolism leading to deeper breathing (increased oxygenation) improved circulation, increased appetite and improved digestion
Sunlight exposure stimulates the body's natural detox pathways by activating the excretory and secretory glands to remove toxins from the tissues
Sunlight can act like insulin by lowering blood glucose concentrations to such an extent that diabetics who partake in regular sunbathing need to closely monitor their insulin
Sunlight through the eyes directly affects the immune response of teh Central Nervous system
Sunlight lowers blood pressure and cholesterol levels
Exposure to UV radiation increases cardiac output by up to 39%
Sun exposure elevates the mood and prevents Seasonal Affective Disorder
Sunlight helps skin conditions such as psoriasis
If the contents of this post interest you, I highly recommend this book! It is an easy and interesting read, especially as it delves into the history of medicine and architecture. Hobday lays a compelling (and well researched) case for the urgency of implementing sunlight for our health.
Of course, as believers we know our amazing Creator specifically designed our bodies (as well as the plant and animal kingdom) to live under the Sun and receive its benefits.
Not only does the "great light" in the sky mark the time and the seasons as stated in Genesis, but in Malachi 4:2, Scripture states "But for you that fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in his wings." This verse is a metaphor of the physical sun symbolizing the Son of God- the Lord loves to use layered language!
Lastly we find in Ecclesiastes a more specific reference to the life-giving qualities of the sun. Eccl 11:7 says, "Light is sweet, and it pleases the eyes to see the sun." Oh yes, indeed it does!