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Holistic Second Opinion - A Question About Full-Spectrum Lamps and Vitamin D
Posted by Dr. Molly Roberts on February 10th, 2009
Hi Molly,
I saw you at the Ranch and I am a great follower of yours. I have a question. I am healthy but low on vitamin D and have terrible reactions to all of the vitamin D pills and liquids that I have tried. I see online that lamps are sold that claim to emit the proper rays that allow your body to create the vitamin D naturally. Do you know if they work and do you have an opinion or suggestion for me?
Thank you,
Amy Belkin
Hi Amy,
It’s really good to hear from you!
Those light boxes and lamps do work pretty well to raise the Vitamin D level in your body. Of course, there is always the caveat about skin cancer risk. If you have a personal or family history of skin cancer, then we should talk about weighing the risks with the benefits.
Everyone’s reaction to both supplements and lamps is different, and we all make Vitamin D from the sun at different rates. In general, the darker your skin, the harder it is for you to manufacture Vitamin D from UV light.
I would suggest that you get a Vitamin D level drawn (a calcium level should always be drawn along with Vitamin D levels) as a baseline before you start using the lamp. You can then start with a desk lamp to use while you are working. I usually recommend using the lamp for 30 minutes to an hour a day for two months. At that point, it is important to check your Vitamin D level to see how well it works for you. Depending on your body’s response, we can determine how much to use the lamp after that.
If you would like, we can set up the lab draws and follow-up time through my office here. You don’t need to be in Tucson for this – we can set it all up by phone or webcam and use your local lab. Let me know if you would like to do that or if you would prefer to follow up with your primary care doctor.
Take care,
Dr. Molly
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