Aztecs sacrificed human life to keep their sun god content, while Persians sacrificed horses and Incas made pilgrimages to a sacred island of the sun. Life is easier for today’s sun lovers, who only need to remember one simple ritual: Skin protection.
Impending spring break has swimsuits and suntans on students’ minds, but dermatologists urge beachgoers to make skin protection a priority, and to forget the tanning salon altogether.
Staying out of direct sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. and keeping skin covered — with clothing or sunscreen — are the most crucial components of a sun-protection regime.
Dermatologists say shoppers should look for broad-spectrum sunscreens that shield the skin from both ultraviolet (UV) A and shorter wavelength UVB rays.
“Classically UVB rays were considered the damaging ones, and [UV]A rays were the safe tanning rays,” Beth Neel, assistant medical director of Student Health, said. “Now we know that A rays are as damaging as B rays.”
While UVA may not cause obvious sunburn, it contributes to photoaging, freckling and, ultimately, cancer of the skin, according to Kathy O’Rourke, dermatologist with Blue Ridge Dermatology Associates. She recommends brands that contain the ingredient parsol 1789, which blocks both UVA and UVB.
Dermatologists also recommend a sunscreen with a minimum SPF value of 15 for most people and a minimum of 30 for those who have had problem moles or family history of skin cancer, O’Rourke said.
SPF value does not translate directly to a time that can safely be spent in the sun. Instead, it denotes the relationship between the amount of sun the skin receives per unit time with and without the sunscreen. For example, with an SPF 8 sunscreen, you can stay in the sun eight times as long as you would with no sunscreen, Neel said.
This is assuming the sunscreen is correctly applied, and O’Rourke said most Americans don’t do it right.
“You should apply sunscreen half an hour to an hour before going in the sun. The sunscreen has a chemical reaction with the skin, and you have to give it time to work,” she said. “Then it’s like painting a wall. That first coat is your base coat, but you keep putting it on to cover imperfections. Re-apply it every one to two hours that you’re in the sun.”
While several popular Web sites warn sunscreen chemicals are themselves carcinogenic, O’Rourke said there are no peer-reviewed studies in the dermatology literature to support this claim.
On the other hand, it doesn’t take her a moment’s hesitation to condemn tanning salons as “bad news.”
“There is no such thing as a safe tanning bed,” she said. “In the reaction of making more melanin, you’re damaging the cells, damaging the DNA.”
If you simply must tan, however, some argue tanning salons are, in fact, a relatively safe way to do it.
“It’s safer than outdoor tanning because it’s controlled,” Andrea Higgins, owner of Malibu Moe’s Tanning Co., said. “You have to have a certified person through the state of North Carolina, who’s trained to work with individuals based on their skin type to make sure they won’t burn.”
Higgins said some of her customers actually tan to treat psoriasis or acne because of dermatologists’ recommendations, but notes medical considerations are not foremost in the minds of most salon customers.
“They do it because it feels good,” she says of her student customers. “They enjoy it, they think it looks better, and it’s their extra money, their time off from school. They come here with their friends to relax, read magazines … even when we’re behind schedule, nobody’s upset.”
For those who want a tan but not the UV, there is a variety of self-tanning lotions on the market. These contain the ingredient dihydroxyacetone, an ingredient that dyes the skin a tan color. O’Rourke said the chemical itself is nontoxic, but some people experience a rash after applying self-tanning products. She also warns the resulting tan does not provide any protection against the sun and does not negate the need for sunscreen.
