Your Body Needs Sun, But Does Not Need Skin Cancer
/With summer approaching, I wanted to briefly touch on sun exposure and skin cancer. For this blog, I have embedded video and direct links that can explain this information more clearly. CancerResearchUK.org does a tremendous job at educating on this subject and also on various other cancers.
So is there a safer time to go outdoors? YES
One of the most interesting tips I found through their website is the use of the shadow rule. The shadow rule, also known as Holloway's rule, indicates that the sun's rays are strongest when your body's shadow is shorter than your own height. This typically puts the strongest sun rays between the hours of 10am and 3pm.
- Take advantage of the shade
- Cover up
- Minimize exposure during strong sun rays
- USE SUNSCREEN - at least SPF 15
- Vitamin D production
- itamin D is needed for Calcium absorption
- Calcium is a very important mineral needed for maintaining bone health, nerve transmission, muscle contraction, and deserves its own blog post.
Monitor Yourself!
Skin cancer is preventable and can be successfully treated with early intervention. Utilize the ABCDE's of identifying skin cancer, specifically malignant melanoma.
- Patrick Berner, SPT
Cancer Research UK. Sun, UV and cancer. Cancer Research UK. http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/sun-uv-and-cancer. Updated March 24 2015. Accessed May 10 2015.
Melanoma Research Foundation. The ABCDEs of Melanoma. Melanoma Research Foundation. http://www.melanoma.org/understand-melanoma/diagnosing-melanoma/detection-screening/abcdes-melanoma. Updated 2015. Accessed May 10 2015.