For decades now, the mainstream medical establishment has been bombarding us with warnings to stay out of the sun! Use an SPF-50 sunscreen! Stay indoors till sunset! Wear a burka at the beach!
But has the case against sun exposure been taken perhaps a bit too far? I certainly think so. With the rise of "sun-o-phobia" what's gotten lost in the shuffle is the fact that there are actual benefits to sun exposure in limited doses. Recent studies have shown that optimizing your Vitamin D levels may actually help prevent as many as 16 different types of cancers. And the best way to optimize Vitamin D levels? Safe, smart and limited sunscreen-free exposure to the sun! Exposure helps the skin produce the Vitamin D it needs to build bones, quell inflammation, bolster the immune system and protect against cancer (including skin cancer). Now of course this is by no means a license to overdo it, but it consider it permission to step outside and into the sun a bit less fearfully!
So how to use the sun to your advantage? Here's what I recommend:
Manage your dose. Have a healthy respect for the sun. It is a powerful medicine with potentially dangerous side effects on your skin. Treat it like medication, using the lowest dose necessary -- but don't avoid it completely. And remember, never, ever fall asleep in the sun without protection.
Always avoid sunburn. It is sunburn, not healthy sun exposure, that causes problems. Repeated sunburns, especially in children and very fair-skinned people, have been linked to melanoma. Whereas there is no credible scientific evidence that regular, moderate sun exposure causes melanoma or other skin cancers -- so prepare your skin and build up tolerance gradually. Start early in the year (spring), or early in the morning before the sun is strongest, and slowly build up the amount of time you spend in the sun.
Make your own sunscreen. Boost your "internal sunscreen" by consuming antioxidants and beneficial fats. These strengthen skin cells, helping to protect them from sun damage. Eating lots of vegetables and fruits such as blueberries, raspberries, goji berries and pomegranates, and supplementing with green powdered mixes and fish oils helps prep your body for limited, careful sun exposure.
Get frequent, short exposures. Regular short exposures have been found to be much more effective and much safer than intermittent long ones. Note that you cannot generate Vitamin D when sitting behind a glass window, because the UVB rays necessary for Vitamin D production are absorbed by glass. Get 15-30 minutes of unprotected sun exposure 2-4 times a week. Each of us has different needs for unprotected sun exposure to maintain adequate levels of Vitamin D. Depending on your age, what type of skin you have, where you live and what time of the day and year it is, your needs will vary. For more specifics, I recommend the tables in "The Vitamin D Solution" by Dr. Michael Holick.
Know when to stop. After your 15-30 minutes of sun-block free time in the sun, you must protect yourself. If you're going to be out in the sun for longer periods, wear a hat to protect your face and light-colored clothing that blocks the sun and keeps you cool. When you do apply sunscreen, use one the fewest chemicals possible.
Check out the recipe ... of your sunscreen that is. What's in the tube in high doses can be almost as dangerous as the diseases they are said to prevent -- so shop smart when it comes to sunscreens. A typical sunscreen product is a chemical assault on your body, many of which contain cancer causing chemicals. According to the Environmental Working Group, the best, as in least toxic sunscreens on the market are ones without PABA, Parabens, Fragrances, Nanoparticles, Retinyl Palmitate (a form of Vitamin A), Oxybenzone, Benzophenone-3 (B-3) and Amino Benzoic Acid, whose side effects can include a host of health horrors which can effect your heart, hormones and even your DNA!
Buy the good stuff. The best sunscreen is a hat and a shirt. No chemicals to absorb through the skin, no questions about whether they work. But when you are going to be in the sun for long periods, use EWG's top-rated sunscreens to provide broad-spectrum (UVA and UVB-sunburn) protection with fewer hazardous chemicals that penetrate the skin.
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So that makes melanoma very rare compared to breast, prostate and colon cancer. Also they (CDC- Centers for Disease Control) divide it by states with 4 levels. People in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas live right above Mexico and sunlight is very intense in those states especially with the high elevations in AZ and NM. Those states are in the lowest level of getting melanoma. Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire are high in the New England states where sun is the weakest and they are among the states with the highest level of getting melanoma, out of 4 levels!
Moores Cancer Center is proposing that cancer is a vitamin D deficiency. RDA of vitamin D was tripled in 2010. Of course the very best source of vitamin D is sunlight. http://bit.ly/eco-c In 2007 Time Magazine chose vitamin D as one of the 10 medical breakthroughs of the year. Vitamin D is the undisputed cure for rickets.