The Importance of Sunscreen
By Ameera P, a volunteer with the Edgemont Youth Press
With the summer months coming up, many of us are rushing to grab a bottle of sunscreen for those nice hot days; but why do we use sunscreen in the first place? Why is sunscreen so important? To start, sunscreen is one of the best and easiest ways to keep our skin appearing youthful. While keeping our skin radiant is one benefit of wearing sunscreen, there are also a number of much more important reasons we should know about.
Sunscreen helps prevent sunburns. Sunburns can accelerate skin aging and also cause various types of skin cancer including vbasal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma. Using SPF (sun protection factor) 15 regularly can reduce your risk of developing squamous cell carcinoma by about 40%, and your risk of developing melanoma by about 50%. If not using SPF can be dangerous for humans, then what about our beloved furry friends? Just like humans, dogs can also be prone to sunburns and other health and skin complications with excessive sun exposure. Making the decision to use sunscreen on your dog is a smart one. However, using human sunscreen on dogs is not recommended as it can have toxins that are unsafe for animals. It is best to find animal-friendly sunscreen without toxins.
What about tanning? It is possible to tan with sunscreen! Sunscreen does not stop the tanning process – it simply acts as a shield to keep your skin safe, but can still be penetrated. Checking the UV index before tanning is recommended because an index of 6-11 may pose high risk when out in the sun. Between painful sunburns, accelerated aging, and a high risk of cancer, the importance of wearing sunscreen in the summer is clear. Remember to take care of your skin this summer!