Is it true that sunlight kills coronavirus (covid

Recently, news has circulated that basking in the sun can kill the coronavirus (COVID-19). The news has also spread throughout the world, including Indonesia. Is this information true?

Is it true that sunlight kills coronavirus?

The COVID-19 outbreak has now caused more than 858,000 cases worldwide and claimed an estimated 42,000 lives. The increase in the number of cases and victims has prompted the government in every country to impose large-scale territorial restrictions, including Indonesia.

This is so that people do not get together and travel for a while, except when there are urgent matters.

As a result, many people feel “locked up” indoors and come out less often for fear of catching the virus when interacting with other people.

However, most of them end up going out at certain hours to bask in the sun which is said to kill the coronavirus.

According to WHO, until now there has been no research showing that sunlight can prevent transmission of COVID-19.

COVID-19 Outbreak updates Country: IndonesiaData

1,024,298

Confirmed

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Recovered

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Exposure to sunlight or temperatures of more than 25 ° C does not make the body immune from the corona virus. You see, you can still catch it even in a country with hot, sunny weather and temperatures.

This is because several tropical countries with hot weather have reported cases of COVID-19, including in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, not a few people believe that UV rays from the sun can also eliminate coronavirus. Many people in countries currently experiencing winter buy lamps with high concentrations of UV.

In fact, just like sunlight, UV rays on lamps also do not kill coronavirus. In fact, UV lamps are not recommended to be used to sterilize hands or skin areas because they can cause skin irritation due to UV radiation.

Therefore, the best effort to prevent COVID-19 is to regularly wash your hands and reduce the habit of touching your eyes, mouth and nose.

Even so, it doesn't hurt to keep basking in the sun so that vitamin intake is still fulfilled.

The benefits of basking in the sun

Basking in the sun does not immediately kill the coronavirus and makes the body immune to COVID-19.

However, it is no longer a secret that there are many benefits that can be obtained from exposure to sunlight.

Sun exposure can help the body produce vitamin D naturally. Vitamin D is a fairly important vitamin, but not a few people lack this nutritional intake.

This is because meeting vitamin D intake cannot come from food alone, such as fish, egg yolks, and dairy products.

Therefore, basking in the sun is important so that you can get some of the benefits below, especially during the COVID-19 outbreak.

helps reduce depression because sunlight releases the hormone serotonin
get better sleep quality
stronger bones because vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium
boosts the immune system and helps the body fight disease

However, one thing you need to remember is that sunbathing in the sun should not be the only way to get vitamin D intake.

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, prolonged exposure to the sun has dangerous side effects for your skin, such as causing skin cancer.

Experts still recommend that you get vitamin D from a healthy diet. Starting from foods that contain vitamin D naturally, supplements, to foods and drinks that are enriched by this vitamin.

Tips to prevent the dangers of sun exposure

Basking in the sun does have many benefits even though it cannot kill the coronavirus directly. However, you shouldn't just go outside and just expose your skin to the sun.

There are several tips that need to be followed to reduce the risk of being exposed to the dangers of sun exposure and still get the maximum benefits, such as:

use sunscreen, contain at least SPF30
reapply sunscreen every two hours, especially after sweating
bask in the shade
avoid direct sun exposure at 10 am and 4 pm
stick to closed and comfortable clothing, such as a hat and sunglasses
don't forget to drink water to meet your fluid needs

Actually, there are other alternative options that you can do and don't need to be exposed to direct sunlight. You can do some of the options below while doing your daily activities, such as: