September 26, 2015

From today.com, link to article.

http://www.today.com/health/health-benefits-being-naked-how-stripping-down-good-you-t44911

If the article disappears, here is the text:
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How many times during this year’s super hot and humid summer did you just wish you could strip all of your clothes off to cool down?

Well, it turns out being naked may not only be more comfortable but healthier as well. Some experts say that donning your birthday suit more often can help with myriad physical and psychological problems.

So how do you reap the benefits?

First, start in a place you’re a bit more used to being naked: the bedroom. Of course, being in the buff can help bring you closer in your relationship, but it can also aid you in getting a better night’s sleep.

According to the D.C.-based nonprofit the National Sleep Foundation, in order to have a normal sleep schedule and sleep comfortably, your body needs to reach an optimal temperature of around 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Losing the pajamas is an easy way to lower your body temp — which may in turn lead to other benefits: a 2014 study in the journal Diabetes found that sleeping in lower temperatures can help increase your levels of metabolism-boosting brown fat.

Now that you’ve got an easy way to get a better night’s sleep and lose some body fat, how about smoothing out your skin? Restrictive clothing and undergarments often leave indentations and marks all over our bodies, leading to drying and wrinkling of the skin.

“Going naked is great for healthy skin,” plastic surgeon and skincare expert Dr. Michael Fiorillo tells us. “It helps the elimination of sweat toxins that clothing can reintroduce to the body and better overall blood circulation.”

Dr. Lance Brown, a dermatologist in New York City, agrees, adding, “Wearing restrictive clothing can cause excessive sweating which may lead to inflammation of the skin follicles, rashes and breakouts. Going bare gives your skin a chance to breathe.”

While this is all well and good in the bedroom, taking your nudity outdoors can help as well. “Being naked in the sun not only boosts your vitamin D intake and your mood,” says Shaun Galanos, a sex educator and host of The Love Drive who works with famous nudist resort Hedonism II. “But, also it can help improve your circulation, and detoxify the skin.” (Shailene Woodley might be on to something!)

Researchers say that our bodies are better at absorbing Vitamin D from sunlight than supplements, and while exposing your skin to the sun for too long can have serious consequences, the dose of sunshine you get if you sneak outside for 10-15 minutes will be the best natural mood booster.

With your sleep, skin and supplements taken care of, there’s of course the mental component to embracing your nude body. “Spending time in the nude is a great way to get in touch with your body,” Dr. Jenn Mann, relationship expert and creator of the “No More Diets” app, told us. “Most people in today’s society are so disconnected from bodily sensations and this could help.”

Dr. Mann believes more time in the buff can help women battle body image issues. “Being in the nude reduces shame,” she adds. “You can work on self acceptance and that can be very healing.”

So take this as permission to let loose and ditch those clothes — after all, it’s good for your health!

February 5, 2014

I don’t recall how he got it, but Jim T has a February 1938 Popular Science magazine with an article about nudism.  Being scientific and all, it mainly concerned itself with the ability of humans to withstand temperatures without clothing,  but it probably did not hurt magazine sales to have images of naked people.  They called nudism a fad and a cult.  It’s been around way to long to call it a fad now, but the ‘cult’ label I think we could wear like a badge of honor – if we wore anything.

I wanted the pages to be more readable, so they will appear in new windows when the following links are clicked.

rb

January 29, 2012

At our recent club meeting someone mentioned that in France there is a ‘naked city’ of impressive size.  I had not heard of such a thing, so I did a Google search.

It turns out there is a city on the Mediterranean coast (about 65 miles from the Spanish border) named Cap d’Agde (pronounced Cap DAG) that has what is called its Naturist Quarter or as referred to locally, its “village naturiste”.

It is a gated area of the city.  There is a daily tourist tax if you are not a resident.  It is not clear from what I read if the area is privately held (like Disneyland) or if it is just a designated district in the city.  If you don’t lodge within the gated area, you can get a pass card for travel in an out.  If you have lodging arranged inside the area, there is some other arrangement you get with your lodging.  The area on the left in the map below is a camping area.  Note that up on the map is southeast.  The ‘nord’ on the map (out in the water) points north.

According to Wikipedia, the resort area draws about 250,000 to 350,000 naturists annually, with peak days drawing about 40,000.  The beach is about 4km (2.5 miles) long and has sections marked as gay, couples, quiet, and family (left to right on the map.

The Wikipedia article about Cap d’Agde is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cap_d’Agde

Another info site is https://www.tripsavvy.com/cap-dagde-the-naked-city-1516839