Practice Safe Sun and Prevent Skin Cancer

By Kenneth Surr | February 2, 2010

Skin cancer is on the rise. While skin cancers usually affect Caucasians, outside workers, smoker,s and those with a family history of skin cancer, everyone is at risk. Statistics demonstrate that the cases of skin cancer have doubled every decade over the past forty years, and we need to take action how to prevent skin cancer from affecting us.

There are two types of skin cancer that are very lethal if left too late. Therefore, it is crucial to follow these skin cancer prevention tips. The following information is sourced in part from the world’s largest healthcare organization, NHS Direct Online.

Basically, the best way to protect your self from skin cancer is to take care in the sun is to take preventative action and be sure you don’t burn your skin. Once you have been burnt the damage has already been done, so remember to cover up with loose fitting clothes.

Make sure to cover your legs and arms if at all possible as well. Heat stroke can be prevented if you wear loose fitting clothes and drink lots and lots of water to replace what you lose.

Tightly woven fabrics will provide the best protection from the sun. It’s also important to avoid exposure to direct sunlight during the afternoon hours. The sun is at its strongest between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. If you must go outside during these times, be sure to cover up with clothes, wear a hat and sunglasses, and apply plenty of sunscreen.

Of course, sunscreen or sun block is essential when you’re spending time outdoors. Choose a product that has a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. Children, fair-skinned people and those who live in high exposure areas should use lotions with a higher SPF of up to 40.

Be sure that your entire body is covered by sunscreen with sun protection factor above 15. The absolute minimum to cover up is your face, hands, feet and neck but you should also consider using it all over as the most vulnerable parts of your body are the spots that are not usually exposed to sunlight.

Sunscreen should be applied at least 30 minutes before going out in the sun, and reapplied every couple of hours. Perspiration, water and friction from towels will cause the protection to wear off. Even waterproof sunscreen should be reapplied after swimming.

Don’t believe those who tell you that the water will protect you from sunburn. Always use waterproof sun protection when you are out swimming. UVA and UVB rays will penetrate through two feet of water. Similarly, clouds and fog do not prevent ultraviolet rays from reaching and damaging your skin. The ozone layer is meant to protect us, but we’ve damaged it to the point that we now need to protect ourselves.

Finally, you should cover up with clothing and use SPF 15 sun lotion even on cloudy days and always wear a hat and sunglasses that have UVA and UVB filters when in the sun. And if you want a concluding reminder about the dangers of sunlight, remember that ultraviolet rays can harm the retinas in your eyes, causing cataracts.

Contributor Kenneth Surr contributes articles to several web sites, on mans health and health education subjects.

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