Vitamin D is nicknamed the "sunshine vitamin" because the skin makes it from ultraviolet rays. Sunscreen blocks its production, but dermatologists and health agencies have long preached that such lotions are needed to prevent skin cancer. However recent research reveals that vitamin D increasingly seems important for preventing and even treating many types of cancer. Just last year four separate studies found that Vitamin D helps protect against lymphoma and cancers of the prostate, lung and, ironically, the skin. The strongest evidence is for colon cancer. This may be why 100 years ago, when over 90% of the population lived and worked on farms, the cancer rate was only 3% while today the cancer rate is 38% for women and 46.6% for men. Many people aren't getting enough vitamin D. The answer is quite obvious - supplementation of Vitamin D is a requirement for the majority of the population considering todays lifestyle.