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The Longest Day: Could sunscreen give you cancer?

beach sea isle city NJ
The Summer Solstice. It's the day with the longest amount of sunlight. It has to be one of my favorite days of the year!

 We will need to apply a lot of sunscreen with all those hours of sunlight.

 We know too much sun exposure is not safe, but is sunscreen actually safe?

Summertime is when we really need to step up on our sunscreen usage to protect our skin from skin cancer and premature aging.

 I have heard and am hearing again that chemicals in your sunscreen undergo changes when they are exposed to UV rays. You may have seen an article about it recently, too. 

 Some ingredients oxidize and release damaging free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules with unpaired electrons that attack normal molecules to steal electrons they need. They turn a healthy molecule into an unstable free radical starting a chain reaction damaging cells increasing the risk of cancer.

The link below is an article about research done on zinc oxide and how it changes when exposed to sunlight. It was done on lung cells however, not skin cells.

 Read:Could sunscreen be giving you skin cancer?

Don't Panic! I started to panic myself! But I remembered, we have a weapon to fight free radicals, anti-oxidants!

 Anti-oxidants repair and prevent cell damage by donating one or more molecules to an unstable free radical stopping the chain reaction. The anti-oxidant remains stable even though it gave up one electron or more. 

 According to Coppertone Solar Research Center, the use of anti-oxidants in sunscreens reduces free radical formation by 74% when skin is exposed to UV light. Vitamin E is an anti-oxidant frequently used in sunscreen. It will help protect skin cells from free radicals.

Many sunscreens now contain anti-oxidants including my favorites Ocean Potion, Hawaiian Tropic and the organic Badger Sunscreens and Goddess Garden sunscreens. Read your labels. Look for the anti-oxidants. Here are some that are frequently found in sunscreens.

Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E)
Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A)
Ascorbic Acid ( Vitamin C)
Cholescalcifferol Acid (Vitamin D3)
Olive Oil
Soy
You can get beneficial antioxidant from the foods you eat too.
berries
Eating foods rich in anti-oxidants will provide extra protection, too. It is easy to do especially in the summer. Fruits, veggies and beans are full of antioxidant compounds. 

 Some of the top anti-oxidant foods include kidney, black and pinto beans, berries, artichoke hearts, apples, pecans, cherries, plums and russet potatoes.

 It is important to use sunscreen daily to help prevent skin cancer and pre mature aging of the skin. The benefits of wearing sunscreen far outweigh the risk! So don't worry. Keep wearing sunscreen.
       Have a Happy Healthy Skin Day! 
xo
Jill
Licensed Cosmetologist, Esthetician, Makeup Artist

 Wedding, special occasion or everyday makeup and skin care services available in the Philadelphia, Pa. area. Visit my makeup page for more information!

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