Today I’m sharing my post from Sally Cronin’s Smorgasbord blog, in my Safety and Awareness series. The topic is Sun Safety.
Safety and Awareness: Sun Protection
Welcome back to my Safety and Awareness series here at Sally’s Smorgasbord. In this post I’m going to talk about the sun, the importance of taking in some, and the best ways to stay protected from too much.
We all love the sun. The sun turns grey days into brighter days and offers so many benefits. But, like most things in life, moderation is key to avoid consequences.
One of the most important benefits from taking in some sunshine is the benefit of absorbing natural Vitamin D from the sun’s rays. If you live in a country that offers harsh, cold winters, like where I live, here in cold Canada where three out of four seasons, we wear coats, the sun offers sparsely enough dose of the vitamin, so I must supplement for much of the year.
Did you know we can take in roughly 10,000 to 25,000 international units of Vitamin D for fair skinned people, just from being outside for ten to thirty minutes, just a few days a week in the summer, without sunscreen? And apparently, it takes a bit longer for darker skins to get enough of the Vitamin D from the sun.
Yes, I did just say that – without sunscreen. Sunscreen is very important to wear for longer periods in the sunshine, but did you know that by wearing sunscreen we are also blocking most of the Vitamin D from penetrating through our skin? Studies suggest that when completely covered by sunscreen we can only obtain approximately 2% of our daily required Vitamin D, and that isn’t much. Hence, a shorter time outside to reap the vitamin benefits, but any longer, don’t forget to apply the sunscreen.
Sun Protection:
If you spend a lot of time outdoors in the sun, it’s important to wear protective sun protocols, and to include sunscreen. There are numerous articles of UV protective sunblock clothing available, and plenty of styles to suit everyone’s tastes. I have noticed on my winter escapes that many more are wearing protective, long-sleeved sun shirts, even in the pool. Almost all the babies and young ones are also adorned in protective jump suits or water-shirts, and hats.
Everyone loves the sunshine. But not everyone protects themselves properly when out in it for a lengthy period. I know I shake my head when I’m in Mexico and see quite a few bald men in the pool for hours without a hat on. Ouch!! They look like open targets for problems ahead. But with my observations, I notice that most people do wear hats and sunscreen.
Just as in the hot days of summer, one can easily get burned if out for any length of time in any season. Winter, in particular, for those of you who are ski bunnies, it’s essential to wear sunscreen on your face as well, mostly because the sun’s reflection off the snow.
Does anyone remember when we were kids playing outside or at the beach and we’d get sunburns and blisters? Ya, those incidents where we do damage to our skin, usually show their repercussions as we age. For example, I am a dedicated sunscreen user. My husband was not, until he met me. Once he was in my life he learned the rules of living in health. I always slathered him in sunscreen when we traveled, and every day he went to work. And he’d never be in sun again without a hat. That included when he went to work and spent a good deal of time outside through the seasons, on the car lot. He always wore a hat. But guess what? Through our years together we visited the dermatologist annually, sometimes twice a year. He had countless removals of what could have grown into full blown melanoma, removed through the years.
At first, I was shocked by how many times he needed a removal of something new forming – usually on his face or head and I questioned the doctor as to why he had so many growths when I took such good care of him. She told me that people don’t realize that it is the PAST damage that takes years to become troublesome. . . Please continue to the conclusion at Sally’s Smorgasbord.
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