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Colon Health's 'Dynamic Duo'
Published Oct 17, 2007
Here's another reason to prefer light over darkness: Less light could mean less protection against colon cancer.
Sunlight helps your body make vitamin D, and many people fall short on D during the darker days of winter. But like Batman and Robin fighting villains, calcium and vitamin D may be key players in helping your body fend off precancerous colon polyps.
Just as you need both sufficient calcium and vitamin D to build strong bones, you may need the vitamin-calcium combo to protect your colon as well. In a study, calcium supplementation thwarted colon-polyp recurrence only when people had enough vitamin D in their blood.
Similarly, vitamin D lowered the risk of returning polyps only when people popped calcium. Determining how calcium and vitamin D work synergistically to keep the colon free of polyps requires further research.
Getting screened for colon cancer (something everyone over 50 should do) is the only way to know if you have colon polyps or colon cancer, and early detection gives you the best chance of successful treatment.
Source: www.RealAge.com
