Now Playing: Protect Yourself from Skin Cancer
Protect Yourself from Skin Cancer
Now that we have broken back into our outdoor training schedules, you’ll note that you are being exposed to more and more sunlight as the days grow longer. The rays are strongest between 10 am and 4 pm, however, since sun exposure is cumulative, you may need to restrict your overall daily exposure. Fitness Magazine's research has shown that athletes don't put on sunblock most commonly because they forget, according to Philip Cohen, M.D. who is an assistant team physician from my alma mater, Rutgers University. Karen Burke, M.D., Ph.D. of Mount Sinai Medical Center in NYC specifically cites high risk individuals as those who train or play in the sun. Activities such as boating, swimming, hiking and mountain climbing expose one to even more harmful rays because the sun is reflected and intensified by water. While rock and mountain climbing, the sun is even stronger hence more deadly at higher elevations.
Boating and marine sports increase your risk for sun damage due to the intensified rays reflecting off the water
Coming out from winter hibernation you may be like me and notice a “fish belly” white pallor to your skin. Unless you’ve recently vacationed in a tropical area, this is the bane of many a athlete as a natural result of wintering over indoors. Now you may, for vanity’s sake want to run to your local tanning salon just to start yourself off with a “bit of color”. Please consider this: Although the tanning salon industry has lobbied for years contending that their lights do not cause skin cancer, it has been conclusively found that they inflict just as much damage, if not more, than natural sunlight.
For years they touted themselves as the safe alternative to laying out in the sun. Well, there appears to be no real difference between the UV lights used in the tanning beds and the effects of sun tanning outdoors. As early as 1994, a Swedish study showed women 18-30 years old who visited tanning parlors 10 times or more a year had seven times greater incidence of melanoma than women who did not use tanning beds. In another study, people exposed to 10 full-body tanning salon sessions had a significant increase in skin repair proteins typically associated with sun damage, indicating that ultraviolet (UV) radiation from indoor tanning is as dangerous as UV from the sun. In 2002, a study from Dartmouth Medical School found that tanning device users had 2.5 times the risk of squamous cell carcinoma and 1.5 times the risk of basal cell carcinoma .
UV-A and UV-B, What’s the Difference?Actually tanning salons may be even more dangerous than normal sun exposure. Natural sunlight contains a mixture of both short-wave UV-B and the longer wave UV-A rays. Both UV-A and UV-B exposures can lead to premature ageing of the skin, and both increase a person’s risk of developing skin cancer, including malignant melanoma. The difference is that UV-B rays cause more rapid tanning and burning while UV-A rays do not cause burning until exposure levels are very high.
Indoor tanning booths and beds most commonly use ultraviolet bulbs that emit predominantly UV-A rays. This puts one at greater risk because, UV-A rays penetrate more deeply into the skin and can even inhibit the effectiveness of cells supporting the body’s immune system in addition to raising the individual’s risk of developing malignant melanoma and other skin cancers.
Solutions…If you wish to have a natural looking tan without the risk of damage to your skin, I can suggest the Badger Totally Tan Waterbased Airbrush Tanning System. Models, competitive body builders and dancers have used airbrushing for application of theatrical make up for both the face and body. It is a natural, flawless application that stands out as being nearly undetectable.
Badger’s Totally Tan is a waterbased solution applied with their patented airbrush to give beautiful, even coverage with a very natural development of color within a few hours. This is NOT one of those other sunless tanners that turn your skin an unnatural orange or stain your palms. Spray can tanners likewise are costly and do not give the same fine, natural coverage as an airbrush. A Totally Tan airbrushed tan will last 7-10 days and can be refreshed in between times with their Tan Refresh and Extend lotion. This lotion renews your tan while softening your skin with aloe vera, vitamins, botanicals and grapeseed extract which is a powerful antioxidant. In fact, grapeseed extract when applied to the skin, has actually been seen to reduce sun damage. The Totally Tan system includes the Thayer and Chandler Air Star V compressor with air filter and regulator, automatic shutoff, on-off switch, and built-in airbrush holder. The Totally Tan airbrush gun sprays a controlled, fine mist for complete whole body coverage. It can be adjusted down to do your face and even apply liquid airbrush makeup. It even comes with an instructional video. You'll learn all the nuances of airbrushing so that you can do others if you wish. Have a sunless tanning party! I have had this equipment for at least 3 years and it performs like a workhorse. Don’t be fooled. This is professional quality equipment and will pay for itself in savings from what you would pay visiting tanning salons. More than that, it is a savings from surgeries to remove skin cancer lesions as a result of overexposure to UV light. Don’t damage your skin for vanity’s sake! Get a lovely, natural looking illusion of a deep tan with the Totally Tan Airbrush Tanning System and apply sunblock when you are out training. You’ll have the best of both worlds!Visit Badger Airbrush Company's Website below:
Totally Tan Airbrush Tanning System by Badger
