PLX Academy · Personal Experiences · 27 June 2022
Staying out of the sun is the best way to avoid sun damage. Other precautions – according to Cleveland Clinic – include using sunscreen, wearing protective clothing, and avoiding sunlight between in the middle of the day when UV rays are strongest.
Sunburn is one of those summer health risks that can come with long-term consequences. A few sunburns will increase your risk of skin cancer. It is the most common cancer in US – approximately 9,500 people in US are diagnosed with skin cancer every day. In 2022 there will be an estimated 1,918,030 new cancer cases.
Nearly one in five people develop skin cancer sometime in their life. The majority of skin cancer causes are attributable to UV exposure. Use of indoor tanning also increases risk for all skin cancer types, as does a personal history of the disease. Sunburns during childhood or adolescence can increase the odds of developing melanoma later in life. Having five or more sunburns in your life doubles your chance of developing melanoma. More than one-third of adults and nearly 60 percent of children admit they’ve gotten sunburned within the past year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Experts from Cleveland Clinic suggest that staying out of the sun is the best way to avoid sun damage. You may have been taught that you need sunlight for your body to make vitamin D, because vitamin D is not found naturally in most foods. But today, many foods are fortified with vitamin D during the manufacturing process. Thus, sun exposure is not as important for the body’s vitamin D supply as it used to be. Of course, being outdoors makes most people feel good. And playing tennis is better for your health than watching television. But you can still protect yourself from the sun’s damaging effects while enjoying yourself outdoors. The Cleveland Clinic proposes the following precautions :
- Always wear sunscreen. Apply it on your skin every day. Make it a habit, as you do with brushing your teeth.
- Avoid sun in the middle of the day, from about 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The ultraviolet rays, which cause sunburn, are strongest during this time.
- Wear protective clothing. When you do go outdoors, especially for long periods in the middle of the day. Long sleeves and slacks, as well as a wide-brimmed hat, help protect your body against the sun’s harmful effects.
- Wear sunglasses that filter UV light.
What about SPF in sunscreen?
SPF number stands for sun protection factor. It tells you how well the product will protect you from UVB, the burning rays of the sun. The higher the SPF number, the greater the amount of protection. Everyone should use a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30. If you have had a skin cancer or precancer, you should use a sunscreen with an even higher SPF. Many of the new sunscreens have SPFs of 45 or higher.
Recently, a researcher reported that if sunscreens were used regularly by children through the age of 18, there would be a 72% reduction in the cases of skin cancer later in life. For children under the age of 6 months, protective clothing and shade should be utilized. If these methods are not available, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends applying a minimal amount of sunscreen with SPF 15 or greater to areas such as the infant’s face and the back of the hands.