FF - Your community magazine
Page 18
Female Focus
Information supplied by
Dr. I. Poole, Clinica El Arenal. Found at Av. Arenal 2, Jávea. Tel: 96 579 2418
clinicaarenal@gmail.com
Sun and sunburns
It has been a mild winter and spring has brought to us some of the desperately needed rain. Now heading towards the summer the coast comes back to life and the time for swimming, sports and sunbathing starts.
Every year, we doctors have to explain the risk and dangers of unsafe sun exposure and its consequences; the increased risk of skin cancer and how much damage the sun causes to the skin and how this affects the ageing process. It is important though to explain that human skin has survived for several thousand years in all climates, from the deserts to the poles without the need of extra protection so why and how do we have to protect it now?
Firstly because we have changed our living habits in the western civilization from outdoor to indoor life and work to the point that most of us spend 8 hours a day sitting in an office under artificial light, 11 months a year with very little, if any, exposure to the sun.
Secondly because there has been an increase on the rates of all forms of skin cancer
since the seventies. This has been associated with a reduction on the ozone layers caused by CFCs gases but it can also be associated with the fact that nowadays people do enjoy more time for their holidays, can travel further distances and that sunbathing is for many of us, an essential part of the summer.
Melanine is meant to protect the skin from the feared UV rays and is produced by some skin cells called melanocytes. Its production is activated by sun exposure but it may normally take from 3 days to two weeks to achieve an even tan colour. Therefore it is quite common to get burned in this initial process and as solar burns are behind most forms of skin cancer, it is here when intervention is required.
Gradual exposure to the sun is essential, specially for those who work indoors, starting early in spring to give the skin the chance to produce melanin by going out, walking and sitting in the sun on weekends and increasing all forms of outdoors activities. Later on, when the sun is stronger, a sun blocker is required for doing this, but for the people who travel from northern countries in the peak of the summer when sun is at its worst, you should be aware that only 10 minutes of unprotected exposure can lead to bad sunburns on those initial days.
There is a condition called “prickly heat” in lay English, where those affected seem to react to direct sunlight on over exposed skin in a very similar way to an allergy with an itchy reaction. It is easy to diagnose as it only affects the exposed areas. Prickly heat is usually treated with antihistamines and in some cases with steroids but it is always better to prevent it with the use of sunblockers, hats and adequate clothing. It is also important to understand that for all these patients, gradual exposure is the best prevention.
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