by Hanna Souhail
The
weather is finally getting nice in New England and everyone wants to go outside
and do their favorite activities.
Whether it is hiking, bike riding or playing a match of tennis, you will
surely be outdoors soaking up the sun.
But wait! Have you thought about
how harmful the sun is to your body? Of
course, we should always protect ourselves from UV radiation, but during the
spring and summer months, it becomes even more important. Obviously, UV rays are strong all year long,
but exposure is its greatest during spring and summer (May-August), because
that is also the time of year when we spend most of our time in the great
outdoors. Although we enjoy all this
relaxing, outdoor leisure time, take into consideration the harm we may
potentially be putting are bodies at risk of, and learn some ways of how to
protect against them.
The
sun causes plenty of skin changes, most of which we consider beautiful, such as
bronzed skin. But ultraviolet rays also
cause skin damage. For one, UV rays
cause skin fibers called elastin to break down, which in the long term causes
skin to stretch and sag. You will also see
some wrinkles soon!
Aside
from your newly earned wrinkles, skin can also become discolored. Freckles and redness are sure to come along
after being over exposed to the sun.
Although saggy, discolored skin is unpleasant, the sun can cause even
worse problems.
Consider
the diseases and illnesses we put ourselves at risk for, just to achieve a nice
summer glow. UV radiation, especially
from the sun, is the number one cause of skin cancers, melanoma being the
deadliest. Please, do not put yourself
at risk of cancer to enjoy a nice day out in the sun.
Even
though cancer is at the severe end of the spectrum, there are also milder
sicknesses which can occur. Sun burns
happen to almost everyone, especially those with fair skin. However, your sun burn can be even more
dangerous than you think. Although you
may believe you are red from the burn, you may actually have a more sever burn,
called sun poisoning. Symptoms of the
poisoning include skin redness, swelling, dizziness, dehydration, nausea, and
headaches. Not fun, right?
If
any of these have already happened to you, remove yourself from the sun. If not, here are ways to protect yourself from any future outbreaks. First of all, wear sunscreen, at least SPF
30, but if you can, make the SPF even higher.
Search for sunscreens which are labeled “broad-spectrum,” so you know
that you will be protected against both UVA and UVB rays.
Limit
your sun exposure. Although we can burn
from being in the sun for only a short amount of time, the longer we stay, the
higher our risk becomes of suffering from any of the above symptoms or
illnesses.
Wear
protective clothing. Hats, visors and
sunglasses protect both our faces and eyes from sun exposure. While at the beach, throw on a cover up while
lounging or strolling. The more clothing
we have on, the lower our risk becomes.
So,
although we all enjoy our fun in the sun, we need to take the time to prepare
ourselves from the dangerous exposures.
Apply sunscreen before heading out to do any outdoor activity, whether
it be going to the beach or having a picnic.
Throw sunglasses and a long sleeve shirt into your bag on the way out
the door. The more precautions we take,
the less likely we will suffer, and the more fun we will have.
Bibliography:
"Sun
Poisoning: Symptoms and Treatment." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 29 Apr.
2014.
"Sun
Exposure, Skin Cancer, and Other Sun Damage." WebMD. WebMD, n.d.
Web. 29 Apr. 2014.
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