Enjoy the Summer Sun, but
Protect Yourself from Harmful Rays

Most people love to be in the summer sun. Children especially love to play outside. The sun can be good for your health. However, too much sun also can hurt you.

Ten minutes in the sun can help your body make Vitamin D. Vitamin D is important because it helps your body absorb calcium, which is needed to make strong bones. Recent studies also suggest that Vitamin D may protect you against osteoporosis, high blood pressure, cancer, and other diseases. Children who do not get enough Vitamin D can develop rickets. Rickets is the softening and weakening of bones that cause broken bones and deformities.

Sunshine is important for good health. Yet you should limit your time in the sun and protect yourself against the harmful rays of the sun.

Exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation over a long time can affect your skin, eyes, and immune system. You can end up with serious and constant health problems.

A summer tan is not a good tan
“Remember that if you form a tan, you will have ultraviolet radiation damage,” said Dr. Alfred Lane on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Website. He is a pediatrician and researcher at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital in California. “The body really does not forget this damage,” he said. “It builds up from childhood through teenage years and adulthood. It can lead to skin cancer.”

UV radiation comes from the sun. UVB is a type of UV radiation. UVB is unsafe for eyes. It can lead to cataracts and other eye problems. UVA is another type of UV radiation. UVA causes indirect DNA damage. This indirect DNA damage mostly causes malignant melanoma (skin cancer).

Melanoma is the most serious kind of skin cancer. About 59,940 cases occurred in 2007. It caused about 8,110 deaths. Exposure to sunlight also causes most non-melanoma skin cancer.

Most non-melanoma skin cancers develop on sun-exposed areas of the body, like the face, ears, neck, lips, and the backs of the hands. Depending on the type, they can be fast or slow growing, but they rarely spread to other parts of the body.

More than 1 million cases of non-melanoma skin cancer happen in the United States each year.

Skin color does not matter
UV rays affect everyone’s eyes and skin. It does not matter what color skin a person might have. People with darker skin, like African-Americans and Hispanic Americans, tan more easily and burn less than lighter skinned people. Yet all tanning is a kind of skin damage.

People with light skin are more likely to get UV damage and burn in the sun. You do not have to get sunburned to raise the risk of skin cancer.

You may think about protecting your skin only when you are outside a long time, like at the beach or pool. Yet sun exposure adds up every time you are in sunlight.
Sun safety tips

The following is a list for sun safety. This information is from the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS).

• Avoid being in the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
• Get in the shade, especially in the middle of the day. This is when the sun is the strongest.
• Use a sunscreen or lip balm with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. Pick a sunscreen that protects against UVA and UVB rays.
• Put on sunscreen about 30 minutes before you go out in the sun. Then your skin can absorb it.
• Use about a handful of sunscreen. Cover all exposed skin. Get a waterproof sunscreen if you will swim or sweat from exercise. Put on more after you swim, dry off with a towel, or sweat.
• Wear clothing that covers your skin. Use clothing with tightly woven fabric. You should not be able to see through fabric when you hold clothing up to the light.
• Wear a hat with a wide brim that covers your face, ears, and neck. If you wear a baseball cap, put sunscreen on your ears and neck.
• Wear sunglasses with 99 percent to 100 percent UV absorption. This protects eyes and the surrounding skin.
• Use sunscreen even on a cloudy or hazy day. UV rays go through clouds.

Experts recommend a sunscreen with a 30 SPF or higher. Wear clothing with a high SPF. Be careful not to get sunscreen in eyes and mouth. Children 6 months or younger should not wear sunscreen. They should wear a hat, long sleeves and long pants.

For more information on protecting your skin from UV radiation, go to the American Cancer Society Website at http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/PED_7.asp?sitearea=PED. Or go to the U.S. Health and Human Services Website at http://www.hhs.gov/.

Sources: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Wear Sunscreen for Lifelong Benefits.” June 5, 2009. American Cancer Society. “How Do I Protect Myself from UV?” Wikipedia. “Ultraviolet.”
American Cancer Society. “Skin Cancer Facts.” American Cancer Society. “Are Some People More Susceptible to Sun Damage?” “Appendix B: Sunscreen: How To Select, Apply, and Use It Correctly.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, April 26, 2002.