Every day we are made more aware of the dangers of the sun rays. We also need to become more aware of the effects of sunlight on our skin. We now know that tanning is not healthy for our skin. Our environment has changed and the incidents of skin cancer and skin complaints are increasing at a very rapid rate.

Exposure to the sun results in a number of conditions. One of the initial conditions is photoaging, which is a premature breakdown of the skin that causes a loss of elasticity, an increase in wrinkles, dark blotches, liver spots and broken blood vessels. The most serious long-term effect of sunlight on the skin is cancer. The sun causes a variety of skin cancers including squamous cell cancer, basal cell cancer and malignant melanoma (the rarest form).

These types of cancers are most often found on sun-exposed areas such as the head, neck, rim of ears, chin and the backs of hands of fair-skinned individuals and they appear as lesions or moles with an irregular outline.

Studies have shown that the risk of developing skin melanoma is related to the individuals tendency to burn easily and tan poorly.

If sunscreens are used properly throughout childhood and adolescence, this will substantially reduce the risk of developing skin cancer. Consequently suffering even one serious burn as a child almost doubles the chance of developing skin cancer later in life. The number of malignant melanoma cases has risen from 738 in 1980 to an estimated 2600 in 1990.

In addition to the long-term effects of the sun there are serious short-term effects as well. One of these effects is photosensitivity, which is an adverse reaction to sunlight characterised by rash, redness or swelling and can be a side-effect of various medications. The most common medications which cause a photosensitive reaction are anticancer drugs, antidepressants, antipsychotic diuretics and some hypoglycemics.

Talk to your Phoenix Drug Store Pharmacist about the potential of photosensitivity with any medication you are taking. The best possible way to deal with the sun rays is to forget about tanning and avoid direct sunlight completely. In many cases this is not possible.

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