Protect Your Skin from Harmful UV Rays!

July is national UV Safety Month, and with summer in full swing it is important to know what safety measures you can take when having fun in the sun. It is important to realize that the exposure that you have to sun is causing most of the wrinkles and age spots on your face. In addition sun exposure causes most of the skin changes that you might think are just a normal part of the aging process.

·         Pre-cancerous and cancerous skin lesions

·         Benign tumors

·         Fine and coarse wrinkles

·         Freckles

·         Discolored areas of the skin (mottled pigmentation)

·         A yellow discoloration of the skin

·         The dilation of small blood vessels under the skin
 

What to do to Help Protect Your Skin from the Sun: 

·         Make sure to apply sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher 30 minutes prior to going out in the sun and reapply it every few hours after that

·         Opt for cosmetic products and contact lenses that offer UV protection

·         Invest in a pair of sunglasses that offer you total UV protection

·         Try to avoid direct sun exposure as much as possible during peak UV radiation hours (10am-3pm)

·         Avoid tanning beds
 

1.       Up & Up Sport Continuous Spray SPF 30

2.       Walgreens Sport Continuous Spray SPF 30

3.       Banana Boat Sport Performance Continuous Spray SPF 30

4.       Aveeno Continuous Spray SPF 50
 

1.       One blistering sunburn in childhood or adolescence more than doubles your risk of developing melanoma later in life

2.       An estimated 20 percent of all Americans will develop skin cancer at some point in their lives

3.       The sun’s harmful UV rays can penetrate through clouds and even a thick fog!

4.       UVA rays make up 95 percent of our sun exposure, which can cause skin aging and wrinkling and contribute to skin cancers

5.       UVB rays can cause sunburns, eye damage that may lead to disorder like cataracts, immune system damage, and skin cancer

6.       UVC rays are the most harmful type of UV ray, most are blocked by the ozone layer and don’t reach the earth. As of right now they are not of great concern, but could be in the future due to the thinning of our ozone
 

Melanoma is the most serious form of skin cancer. It could be triggered by intense, occasional sun exposure, the kind that you get on a beach vacation, when you come home sunburned. If melanoma is detected early it is almost always curable. Warning signs can be found within the moles, or brown spots and growths on your skin. These signs include: asymmetry, border, color, diameter, evolving, and ugly duckling approach. Asymmetry occurs when the two halves of the mole do not match. Another thing to look for is uneven borders that appear to be notched. Melanomas are usually larger in diameter. Any change in size, shape, color, elevation, or symptoms such as bleeding, itching, or crusting indicates danger. “Normal” moles tend to look similar, but an “Ugly Duckling Mole” will look different in color, pigmentation, or size when compared to other moles.

Vitamin D is essential for helping you build and maintain strong bones. However, you should be careful of obtaining it from sun exposure. Instead if you want more vitamin D try to obtain it from your diet. Drink vitamin D-fortified orange juice or milk, eat oily fish (i.e. salmon), and/or take a daily multivitamin that contains vitamin D.