Can you believe we are in May, The year is flying past!
This is an important month to take a moment to reflect on melanoma, skin cancer awareness and the things we can do daily to help prevent what can be such a life-changing disease.
Skin cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer and the numbers are rising each year in the UK. There were just under 17,000 new cases of skin cancer between 2016-2018 in England alone and Cancer Research suggests 86% of these cases were preventable.
Preventable.........Skin Cancer is one of the most preventable cancers.
Just that sentence alone should make you stop and think, but we are living in a world full of people doing things knowingly that will give them cancer like not wearing SPF and using tanning beds.
This being the case I want to focus on what we can do to help our skin in a way that will prevent future damage and life-changing diseases.
SPF
We all know about it but we don't all use it daily, but why?
Some think SPF will stop them from getting a tan, some don't like the feel of it on their skin. We are living in a world full of education and if you're still stuck in the dark ages and think SPF stops you from tanning you need to think again.
SPF is designed to protect your skin from UVA and UVB rays. These rays damage our skin by breaking down our collagen and elastin production at cellular level and in some cases can cause a burn to our skin's surface.
SPF is vital for all ages, sexes and skin types, we can't physically live in a bubble so we must protect ourselves from one of the most harmful elements, the sun.
Our pigment will still rise to the surface of the skin to give us colour because our melanocytes, the cells that protect us from these rays will still be activated by the sun. The difference is they are now not working alone to protect the surface of our skin, they have the help of our SPF.
There are also millions of different SPF formulas so you will find something that suits you. From powders to creams, lotions to gels whatever your skin type if you shop around you will find one that you like. Think of it as an extension of your skincare routine, you're simply protecting your investment.
Vitamin A
Did you know Retinyl Palmitate, a form of vitamin A has sun protection properties, as much as SPF 20!
We all know vitamin A is vital for skin health, but using the right formula can also positively impact your skin.
There is a vitamin A explosion going on in the industry but don't be deceived by the marketing hype surrounding some products. You must use vitamin A in the correct dosage and form to get the best results.
Retinyl Palmitate is the dominant form in our skin and makes up more than 80% however we lose this daily due to UV damage. When cells lose vitamin A and become deficient they mutate and can become cancerous. A skin rich in vitamin A will function at its best and help to avoid skin cancer.
Protection
There are many other ways in which we can protect our skin on a daily basis, simple solutions such as wearing protective clothing, hats and seeking shade where possible.
We can also add additional ingredients to our skincare line up to help fight the battle, such as antioxidants and peptides.
Antioxidants are skin caretakers, they work to help clean up free radical damage caused by the environment and work hand in hand with vitamin A to repair and protect.
Peptides will work as penetrant enhancers making the best use of your vitamin A and antioxidants to encourage all-round skin health with additional anti-ageing benefits.
Eating a rainbow of foods is always advised to help keep you in a good state of health but also to help your skin fight damage. Did you know tomatoes contain lycopene, a plant nutrient with antioxidant properties that can help protect your skin from UV exposure?
Avoid
There are strong studies to suggest that tanning beds can damage the DNA in your skin cells, over time leading to mutations and skin cancer.
Not only that they can cause a lot of skin issues such as pigmentation, breakouts, lines, wrinkles, loss of elasticity and dryness. We can't avoid the sun; it surrounds us daily, but we can choose to avoid tanning beds to help prevent this life-changing disease.
Midday sun is when the UV rays are at their highest because they have a shorter distance to travel through the atmosphere to reach us. Avoiding midday sun is another way we can be sun safe and prevent future damage to the health of our skin.
Did you know if you allow your skin to burn this is actually classed as a scar? The more often you burn, the greater the risk of getting skin cancer. Just one blistering sunburn in childhood more than doubles your chances of getting skin cancer in later life.
Helping your skin on a daily basis using the correct topical and internal products can encourage skin cells to behave in the right way leading to long-term protection and a youthful-looking glow.
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