"Keep tanning, you look great in leather."
This phrase comes from The Skin Cancer Foundation's campaign to discourage tanning. Fact is, when you tan you increase your chances of developing skin cancer. Many people now understand that sunburns are a bad idea. But there are still folks out there tanning.
Per the Skin Cancer Foundation, up to 90% of visible skin changes attributed to aging are caused by the sun. Wrinkles, fine lines, age spots may be inevitable, but they are caused by the sun.
Understanding the effects of UVA and UVB exposure will go a long way to maintaining youthful skin as long as possible. Following are some good-to-know facts.
UVB ray exposure may be the main reason for sunburn. Meanwhile, UVA rays are implicated in photo-aging, are constant from sun-up to sundown, go through car glass and under shade. The current thought is that UVA rays may even initiate Skin Cancer.
According to the Skin Cancer foundation, "Individuals applying high-SPF sunscreens may not burn (UVB is the chief cause of sunburn), but without UVA-screening ingredients they can still receive large amounts of skin-damaging radiation." Please note the Sun Protection Factor (SPF) rating is a measure of a sunscreen's ability to prevent UVB from damaging the skin. UVA exposure is not quantified, while “broad spectrum” on the label indicates a sunscreen with some UVA protection.
Shielding your skin from both UVA and UVB rays is vital to healthy skin! Not only is sunburn damaging, but so is a suntan.