Summer Sun Safety

Now that summer is upon us, I feel it is important to write about outdoor summer safety. First and foremost, don't go to the beach or pool and just lie and bake yourself in the sun! Relaxing at the beach or pool is great, but please when you lay down on the beach chair, lie under an umbrella or in the shade.

If you want to play in the sand or in the sun at the pool, wear as much clothing as you can to protect yourself, without making yourself uncomfortably hot. Hats, especially for balding men, are an important part of summer safety clothing. (Hats should be from solid fabric, not mesh.) Protecting yourself with clothing is always better than protection using sunscreen alone. Older, more washed cotton fabrics and most polyester blends provide more protection than new cotton clothes.

Sunscreen is also an integral part of daily summer safety. I recommend applying sunscreen to any parts of you skin that will be exposed to the sun at least 20 minutes prior to any sun exposure. So, the best way to use sunscreen is to put it on before you leave your house for the beach or pool, rather than when you get there. Use the sunscreen liberally. It is recommended that one ounce (a full shot glass) of sunscreen be rubbed in to cover someone's entire body when they are wearing a bathing suit alone, and no additional clothing (a little less will be needed if you have on a one piece bathing suit). If you are going to get wet, or become sweaty, I would recommend reapplying the sunscreen in the same way every 2 or so hours.

My favorite sunscreens are those with an SPF of 30 or higher, and contain the active ingredient micronized zinc oxide (in a concentration of at least 5%-but preferably more). I like zinc oxide because it is invisible, and forms a layer of protection on the skin without interacting with it. Chemical sunscreens, on the other hand, cause a reaction that can generate heat on the skin for them to work.

Looking overly tanned is unnatural, so don't make that mistake. And if you do prefer to tan, remember that tans eventually make you look older and become more wrinkled. Who wants to be the oldest looking person in a crowd?

8/31/2021 8:00:00 AM
Dr. Lawrence J. Green
Dr. Green’s goal is to provide safe, effective therapies and/or minimally invasive procedures that help patients continue to look and feel their best. His approach is to remain at the cutting edge, but never compromise on patient safety. To this effect, Dr. Green believes that only board-certified physicians with appropr...
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Posted by Ric Clayton
Skin type does matter to a certain degree. Fair skinned individuals are certainly more likely to sunburn, and get sundamage and wrinkles easier than darker skinned people. But burning, tanning, and skin cancer occur in all skin types. The bottom line is: why take a chance? Protect yourself, and avoid sun burns and tans as best you can when out in the sun. -Lawrence J Green,MD
Posted by Dr. Lawrence J. Green
Looks like Dr. Green makes some good points about Mercola's article; good to know. So Dr. Green, does skin type matter? For example, I have olive skin and it takes about 3 hours of direct sun light for me to even get partially burned. To peel I need about 5-7 hours. I almost never even turn red. I usually spend about 1-2 hours at the beach on the weekend (I live in San Diego). Do people like me need to wear sunscreen? I don't really like using it. Thanks, Amac
Posted by Aaron M
Hi Roxanne. Thanks for bringing the article from Dr. Mercola to my attention. Unfortunately, his perceptions are common among non-dermatologists who lack the education about the dangers of the sun. What Dr. Mercola has done is take tidbits of fact and then using specious reasoning, draw incorrect inferences and conclusions. I guess that is why we dermatologists have a job as specialists about the skin! First, it is correct sunlight is needed for Vitamin D synthesis by the body. But, getting incidental sun exposure in younger persons, and Vitamin D and calcium supplementation in the elderly have been proven ways to keep Vitamin D levels normal without going out and baking in the sun. Second, it is correct that (older types of chemical) sunscreens can interact with the skin and possibly generate heat and even maybe free radical production. Fortunately, while this heat and free radical production may in theory harm someone using this type of sunscreen, the fact is that over the last few decades of using them, no one has been known to have been harmed. So, theory doesn't seem to translate to reality. Furthermore, today's sunscreens that contain micronized zinc oxide as the main ingredient, are pure physical sun blockers and do not interact at all with the skin. It is like an invisible armor from the sun. So, there is absolutely no chance these sunscreens can harm you skin (or your body). That said, as I mentioned in my blog, clothing is still preferred over sunscreen when possible. Remember sunlight is a form of ultraviolet radiation, and there is no doubt that radiation can cause cancer. Ultraviolet rays from the sun have been shown directly to cause DNA mutations in our skin. Finally, as a dermatologist, I can't honestly pretend to be knowledgeable about nutrition, but I would question how a dietary substance alone can influence sun protection. For centuries, "experts" have been saying we are what we eat, but when you think about it, there is no direct connection between the stomach and the skin. So, any nutritional supplement will be quite diluted out from traveling throughout the body first before it does reach the skin surface. Lawrence J Green, MD
Posted by Dr. Lawrence J. Green
Dr. Green - I'm getting conflicting messages about the value of sunscreen and I'd like some answers if possible. I've read a lot of stuff about use of sunscreen being just as bad for our skin as sun. And, that sun in moderation w/o sunscreen can help keep us healthy. I clipped an article below from the following link. Any thoughts on this?: <url removed> Learn Why the Myth of the Sun Causing Skin Cancer Can Hurt Your Health A recent study in the prominent US dermatology journal tell us that only a small fraction of US schools have implemented policies that protect students from over-exposure to the sun, and few provide shade, sunscreen, or other ways to avoid ultraviolet rays. Since severe sunburns occur during childhood, which may promote melanoma later, these experts recommend that policymakers and school administrators encourage and implement sun protection policies at schools nationwide. The authors of this study recommend that schools without a sun protection policy adopt one, and at least implement minor changes that could help shield students from the sun, such as allowing staff to put sunscreen on students, and permitting hats and sunglasses when outdoors. Archives of Dermatology June 2002;138:771-774 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Mercola's Comment: Most of us have been bombarded about the dangers of the sun by experts and the media. However, because it is one of the most pervasive and inaccurate myths persisting in most of the patients I see, I can only assume you are under the same misunderstanding. Unfortunately, this myth has contributed to massive amounts of disease and illness in our society. Can sun exposure cause skin cancer? Absolutely. However, appropriate sunlight actually prevents cancer. Exposure to the sun provides many benefits such as promoting the formation of vitamin D. We also have strong evidence that sunlight is protective against MS and breast cancer. The key is to never burn. Although the American Academy of Dermatology will have you bathing in sunscreen, it is one of the LAST things you want to put on your body. It is a toxic chemical that can cause problems in your system. Even if it didn’t contribute to disease, the central issue is that it doesn’t even work. A British dermatologist published an article earlier this year which showed no clear indication that sunscreens worked. Another study in the Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology last year found the same thing. A far more logical solution would be to use clothing to protect you against the sun. So what is the cause of skin cancer and the deadly melanoma? I may sound like I am on my soapbox again but, it is the omega 6:3 oil ratio. I quote from Cancer Res 2000 Aug 1;60(15):4139-45: "Epidemiological, experimental, and mechanistic data implicate omega-6 fat as stimulators and long-chain omega-3 fats as inhibitors of development and progression of a range of human cancers, including melanoma." Last year, the prestigious National Academy of Sciences published a comprehensive review showing that the omega 6:3 ratio was the key to preventing skin cancer development. An Australian study done ten years ago showed a 40% reduction in melanoma for those who were eating fish. And this was without any attention to lowering omega-6 fats. So, do I recommend you pop some fish oil pills and go out and get as much sun as you would like? Absolutely not. You must exercise caution. At the beginning of the season go out gradually, perhaps as little as ten minutes a day. Progressively increase your time in the sun so that in a few weeks, you will be able to have normal sun exposure with little risk of skin cancer. Remember never to
Posted by Roxanne

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