We are not the first to suffer winter
“blahs.” Our ancestors feared the days of
late fall and the hardships that darkness
brought. Survival during those times must
have been difficult enough without losing
the warmth and light of the sun. Not having
enough wood for heat or food to last until
spring could have been fatal. When winter
solstice, the shortest day of the year, took
place about December 21 in the Northern
Hemisphere, people celebrated because
the days to come were going to gain, not
lose, sunlit hours. Winter was going to start
to loosen its cold, cruel grip of darkness, a
wonderful reason for merry-making!
D, necessary for bone calcium formation,
improves with sunlight as a catalyst.
Residents of higher latitudes who have too
little exposure also have higher rates of
lymphoma and other cancers. Seasonal
Affective Disorder (SAD) is a mental health
condition directly affected by a lack of
sunshine. “Winter blues,” a less serious
ailment, also occurs more frequently when
sunlight is limited. The production of
serotonin in the brain seems to be related
to exposure to sunlight and consequently,
better moods. Even in classrooms, the
health of students who suffer from the
absence of sunlight in the wintertime has
been studied. Early studies indicate that
Existing architecture from thousands of
natural light, or full spectrum lighting which
years ago provides evidence that daylight
most resembles sunlight provides healthier
was of great consequence. Stonehenge in
school environments for students and
England was built so that rays of light at
teachers. Natural daylight is proving to be
sunset on the solstice lined up the Altar and extremely important to human health.
Sacrifice stones. Goseck Circle in Germany
has two gates cut into its outer circle which
During the season of renewed physical
correspond to sunrise and sunset on the
light, modern Christian cultures also
solstice, and the Mayan pyramids in Tulum, celebrate a symbolic glow of the season.
Mexico are built so that a sunburst appears While the origin of the actual date of
through a hole in the top when the sun hits Christmas is less clear than that of winter
it on the day of winter solstice.
solstice, in the modern Christian world, the
holy birth of Christ is celebrated at roughly
The sun’s position really doesn’t cause
the same time. For believers, a spiritual
the difference in hours of light; rather, the
light is also growing during this season.
tilt of the earth causes the change. For
With increasing physical light also comes
half the year, the North Pole tilts toward
the time to celebrate Christ’s birth and
the sun and for the other half, the South
celebrate the divine internal light of peace,
Pole is closer to the sun. Inhabitants of the good will, and the radiance of Christian
top half of the earth get shorter hours of
love.
sunlight each day in the fall until the winter
solstice and then the process reverses and
Feeling lousy? Physical, mental, and
the hours of sunlight gradually increase.
spiritual health a bubble off of level? Don’t
despair, look to the days ahead. Celebrate
In recent years, many results of
- light is on the way!
excessive sunlight have become well
known. Too much exposure causes
sunburn, a variety of skin cancers, and
premature aging. However, there are also
health risks that occur when not enough
sunlight is present. Production of vitamin
West Virginia Farm Bureau News 19