Elle Macpherson Believes Sitting in the Sun Every Day 'Works Wonders' for Her Immune System

The supermodel swears by the power of the sun as key to keeping herself healthy

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Published on July 19, 2018 10:11 AM

While many celebrities avoid exposure to the sun, supermodel Elle Macpherson, 54, loves some good old fashion Vitamin D — while still wearing sunscreen, of course.

"Forget about the look of a tan — the immune system is very much boosted by sunshine. I try to lie outside for 20 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes in the afternoon. I close my eyes and raise my face to the sun so that the pineal gland in the front of my head is toward the sun. That just works wonders for your immune system," Macpherson tells NewBeauty in her cover story for the magazine's summer issue.

"I live in the sun," she adds.

And although the model says she "regrets nothing" in her life, she does admit she wishes she was more sun safe in her younger years.

"I do wish I'd worn more sunblock! Or looked after my skin when I was younger, because it really shows now," Macpherson says. "There's one sunblock I love called Invisible Zinc, which is more of a barrier to the sun than a chemical shield."

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Even though Macpherson appears to be a natural in front of the camera, the star says she didn't always feel that way, especially at the start of her modeling career.

"I was quite uncomfortable in front of the camera for many years. I can see it when I look at my younger pictures, that 'I'm so self-conscious, I can't even look in the camera because I'm afraid you'll see me, and I'm afraid I'm not good enough' look," she says. "Actually, I'm much more confident now than I've ever been."

She also feels the most like herself when wearing the most minimal makeup and in her eyes, no foundation is necessary.

"I think less is more anyway, and particularly as you mature. I can't wear foundation now without it really accentuating a whole bunch of stuff I don't want it to accentuate," Macpherson tells the magazine.

As for some of her favorites? "I wear a little bit of RMS's organic concealer under my eyes or on any blemishes or freckles, and then a tiny little bit of translucent powder if I need it," the supermodel says. "I use Pat McGrath Skin Fetish 003 Illuminator — it's just a sheer shine, so it brings out my bone structure — on my eyes and lips. If I need a little contouring or some glow, I'll use the big Chanel bronzer."

Macpherson has really honed into a holistic lifestyle over the past decade, which inspired her premium luxury wellness business, WelleCo, a brand that provides high-end alkaline powdered drinks and elixirs.

On Friday, the supermodel was photographed kissing Andrew Wakefield in Miami, Florida, one year after her divorce from billionaire Jeffrey Soffer.

A Miami modeling source tells PEOPLE Macpherson and Wakefield, 61, "have been dating for a while and seem to have much in common."

"Both are interested in alternative health practices and nutrition and sort of buck the norm to pursue their own idea," the insider says. "They agree on many health and nutrition issues. But he is not that well known around Miami."

The source adds Wakefield, a disgraced doctor who linked vaccines to autism in a retracted study, was married for many years before meeting Macpherson.