There is a season

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “Timing is everything.” It turns out that saying holds true for the timing of cancer diagnoses. According to a British study involving more than one million people, those who are diagnosed with cancer during the summer and fall have a better chance of surviving the disease.

That’s because that is the time of year when sunlight-and the resulting vitamin D levels-are at their highest. Sunlight is essential for the production of vitamin D in the body, and vitamin D has been shown to slow the rate of tumor growth and to trigger the self-destruction of cells developing abnormally. The study revealed that cancer patients diagnosed during sunny periods have a higher concentration of vitamin D in their blood.

The analysis of nearly 1.5 million men and women diagnosed with cancer between 1971 and 2002 found that the people who were diagnosed between June and November had a six percent reduction in death rate. This was especially true of people diagnosed with breast and lung cancer. Women who had breast cancer experienced a 14 percent lower death risk.

The best way to get vitamin D is from the sun. Dr. Wright recommends getting enough sun every day to turn your skin slightly pink. But if that’s not an option for you, try supplementing with 4,000 IU of the vitamin. (Dr. Wright says that the best way to get that total amount is by taking 1 tablespoon of cod liver oil plus 1,000 IU of vitamin D.)