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Recent reports say the risk for cancer of the skin increases if you have experienced a sun burn inside your past. While this might be true, experts warn that we still need be on alert that sunburned or otherwise we still have risks for skin cancer.
A study conducted by The National Cancer Institute warns of evidence that indoor tanning is really a risk factor for melanoma even among people who reported never experiencing burns from indoor tanning or outdoor sun exposure.
Artificial ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure by indoor tanning was also recently confirmed to become a human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
Many who go for indoor tanning say they do so to prevent sunburn from a backyard exposure.
“While tanning bed patrons may avoid sunburn, they are still at risk to build up cancer of the skin because of the deleterious results of UV-A radiation that’s being emitted by tanning beds,” says Dr. Shaily Kesani, a dermatologist within the company at Advocate South Suburban Hospital in Hazel Crest, Ill.
Factors putting you in danger are the amount of contact with sunlight and/or your sensitivity to sunlight. “Exposure to sunlight, be it indoors or outdoors, puts you at risk for cancer of the skin,” Dr. Kesani says.
While many can regulate our quantity of sun exposure, some have a harder time. For individuals who work outside most of the time regulating exposure can be challenging.
The Cancer of the skin Foundation and Dr. Kesani offer the tips below for outdoor workers:
- Outside jobs can often be done inside or moved to a shady location.
- Reorganize the task so tasks requiring outdoor work have completed each morning before 10 am and after 4 pm, to prevent the amount of time of greatest sun intensity.
- Wear protective clothing and cover the skin. Avoid clothes that you could see light through.? If light gets through, the ultraviolet radiation gets through as well.
- Wear a hat and sunglasses
- Use an SPF 30 or higher sunscreen prior to going outdoors. Look for sunscreens with broad spectrum coverage with both UV-A and UV-B protection. Reapply sunscreen every 2 hours. Even when labels claim that sunscreens are “water-proof” and “sweat-proof”, they still need to be reapplied.
- Most of us use less than the recommended quantity of sunscreen in our daily routine. The right amount necessary to attain the SPF on the label is 1 ounce of sunscreen.
Dr. Kesani reminds us that the sun can be fun but to continually take precautions while outside.
