14 DAY TRIAL // Sun rays can heal and destroy; they can be the kiss of life or death, depending on the way we use them or how much time we spend being exposed to them.
Sunlight is known to kill microbes, strengthen the immune and cardiovascular system, improve mood, insomnia and liver functioning, to help the synthesis of vitamin D, the elimination of toxins, to fight cancer of colon, breast, leukemia and lymphomas. Sun rays can help one lose weight by stimulating the thyroid, and ease symptoms of premenstrual syndrome; they also heal swollen joints during peaks of inflammation in cases of arthritis.
Nevertheless, excessive exposure to the sun represents one of the major risk factors in the appearance of skin cancer, especially in the case of light-skinned persons and those with a fat rich diet. All the negative effects of the sunlight on the skin are induced by the ultraviolet (UV) light.
It is also worth knowing that sun burns at skin level are nothing but a harmful process for everyone. Each burning destroys a part of a healthy and live tissue. Repeated burnings can induce irreversible changes that can, in turn, represent the foundation for skin cancer. Various researches showed a clear link between prolonged exposure to sun and skin cancer.
Melanoma, an extremely aggressive skin cancer that is deadly in 20 % of the cases, has been strongly connected to repeated burnings of the skin. Sun radiations seem to have an accumulative effect, manifested through malign tumors which appear after the age of 50.
Moreover, repeated burnings and even intensive tanning gradually destroy the elastic proteins of the skin and its fatty glands, leading to the appearance of wrinkles and premature skin aging.
Solar protection creams must be applied 30 minutes before sun exposure and this operation must be repeated at each 3-4 hours after going into the water or if there is abundant sweating. Light-skinned persons need a solar protection factor with a filter of a power of 30-40, while darker-skinned persons need a protection factor 15-30.
Light-skinned, light-haired persons should starts sun exposure with 5 minutes per day; darker-skinned persons with 15 minutes daily. The maximum should be 30 minutes of daily exposure for the largest body surface. Avoid exposure to sun during the summer months between 10:00-15:00, when the sun is extremely powerful.
Even so, the creams do not ensure a complete protection, and tanning lotions can aggravate the problem, producing more profound burnings. The false protection feeling conferred by the creams can make people stay for longer periods in the sun, thus increasing the risks.
Small children must never be exposed to direct sun, as their skin defense system against radiations is still not well developed.