Increased exposure to sunlight linked to reduced coronavirus death risk

Increased exposure to sunlight linked to reduced coronavirus death risk

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People living in sunnier areas may be at lower risk of dying from the coronavirus, according to a new study conducted in the US and repeated in Italy and England.

Researchers compared COVID-19 deaths with ultraviolet (UV) levels for the same period and found that sunnier areas were associated with fewer deaths.

The study, published in The British Journal of Dermatology, found that the mortality risk ratio – the ratio between the probability of dying for a certain population group and the risk of death for all other population groups – decreased by 29% in the US for every 100 kilojoules per square meter increase in average daily ultraviolet light. In Italy and England, there was an estimated decrease of 32%.

Researchers are investigating what may be behind this correlation. One possible explanation is that nitric oxide is released through the skin when exposed to sunlight. Some studies suggest that releasing nitric oxide through the skin may reduce the recurrence of the SARS Coronavirus2, the article reads.

Another possible explanation is that other studies have shown that increased exposure to sunlight is associated with fewer heart attacks and lower blood pressure, both of which can reduce the factors to die from COVID-19.

According to the research, this reduced risk could not be explained by vitamin D levels in the local population. This is because the research is based on areas where UVB (type B ultraviolet) levels are too low to deliver significant vitamin D levels in the body.

The study took into account other known risk factors associated with exposure and an increased risk of COVID death, including age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, levels of environmental infection, air pollution, and temperature.

Because the study was observational, it could not determine cause and effect. But according to researchers, if further studies determine that there is a causal effect, sunlight can serve as a simple intervention for public health.

“These early results provide exposure to sunlight as one way to potentially reduce the risk of death,” said Dr Richard Weller, a corresponding author, consultant dermatologist and reader at the University of Edinburgh.

The new study may be particularly relevant to Israel, which is a sunny country with a high UV index.

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