With this year’s June being recorded as the hottest month in the last century, we are all in need of tips of how to protect our skin this summer. Staying indoors in not always an option, so exposing us to the harmful rays of the sun is inevitable for most, but it does not have to be damaging.
With the proper appliance of sunscreen products and a hefty amount of vitamin C, there is no need to worry ourselves about diseases or unaesthetic effects, such as uneven tan lines. It’s best to avoid the sun’s UV rays, but that is both impossible for most and unappealing to others, who prefer gaining that natural tan glow that will certainly look good.
However, we are being warned that we should also be careful with how much we expose ourselves to the sun and for how long we let it affect our skin. Obviously, trends such as #SunBurnArt should be avoided like the plague and proper appliance of sunscreen should become a habit during the summer’s hottest days.
Dermatologist, Kiran Lohia, advices that if it’s not possible to stay indoors during 10 AM and 4 PM when the sun is at its strongest, that we should always properly apply lotion to protect us from the UV rays to the exposed areas. It’s also important to carefully choose a sunscreen that provides both UVA and UVB protection.
UVA protects our skin against pigmentation and photoaging while UVB will prevent excessive tanning and skin cancer, such as melanoma. So, it’s vital that we choose a sunscreen of at least SPF 30, but under SPF 50, which could be counterproductive. The sun itself provides us with a healthy amount of vitamin D that should not be neglected.
Our protection against the damaging long-lasting effects of the sun can also be prevented through more than exterior means. Sunscreen isn’t the most we can do. Consuming a decent amount of vitamin C and anti-oxidants will also prevent excessive tanning to a certain extent, particularly strawberries.
Keeping our skin safe during the peak of summer is vital to our health. A particularly painful skin burn may have more severe effects than the sickly red and stinging sensation that will not be detected until years later. Conditions such as melanoma, which is a lethal form of cancer for 75% of cases, can be caused by overextended exposure to the sun and you may not know it until it’s too late.
Image source: sexualhealthblog.wordpress.com
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