My husband just forwarded me this great YouTube video showing how exposure to the sun’s UV rays can damage our skin over time.
It’s a timely reminder to wear sunscreen, hats and sunglasses, and try to stay out of the direct sun during peak UV ray hours, about 10 to 2. Kids, too!
Protecting our skin not only helps prevent skin cancer, but can keep … read on
As a child, I remember my mother declaring that of our entire family (2 adults and 4 kids) she was the only one who was pestered by mosquitoes when we were at our summer cabin by the lake.
She felt understandably persecuted by the little blood-sucking menaces.
And she probably was right.
WebMD reports that “genetics account for a whopping 85% of our susceptibility to mosquito bites.”
SPF = Sun Protection FactorAn SPF rating is an estimate of how effectively a sunscreen product reduces the time it takes your skin to burn. For example, if it normally takes about 10 minutes in the sun for you to burn, a product with an SPF of 15 extends that time to burn to 150 minutes. SPF 30? Approximately 300 minutes.
Related post: First aid for sunburns
Keep in … read on
Last month a nurse posted this selfie on her Facebook page with the following message:
… read onIf anyone needs a little motivation to not lay in the tanning bed and sun here ya go! This is what skin cancer treatment can look like. Wear sunscreen and get a spray tan. You only get one skin and you should take care of it. Learn from other people’s mistakes. Don’t let tanning prevent
Consider benefits versus risksLast spring I went to Florida for spring break and was attacked by sand fleas. I had about a million (okay, about 70) bites over both legs, and I wrote a post about my attempts to find relief.
In short, nothing really worked other than ice packs and cool baths. Cool skin decreases blood flow, which deceases the amount of histamine, which decreases the itchiness.… read on
Isn’t Florida known as the “Sunshine State”?
Then why do they have so many tanning beds?
That’s what I learned in a recent New York Times article regarding the dangers of tanning beds: Warning: That Tan Could Be Hazardous.
… read onHere in the Sunshine State, there are more tanning salons than McDonald’s restaurants, CVS stores or Bank of America branches, according to a 2014 study by University of Miami researchers.
Don’t avoid all sun exposureVitamin D just won’t get out of the news. I posted about it a couple of weeks ago, and here I am commenting again on something else I read.
Actually, a friend sent me a link to a health care blog that referred to a recently-published study out of Sweden. Swedish melanoma researchers followed almost 30,000 women (I’m not sure why just women) … read on
The Doctor Mole skin cancer detection appI was browsing through some smartphone apps last week and I ran across one called Doctor Mole. At first I thought it had something to do with the garden pest—I have an infestation of moles plowing through my vegetable garden every evening, so they are much on my mind.
I thought, “Yes! An app to tell me how to get rid of … read on
Here comes the sunAlthough sunscreen could and should be used year-round, we buy more sunscreen products in the summer months. And it’s a good time to stock up on your favorite product, because this is also when you’ll find the best sales.
But do you know what to look for when choosing a product? Do you understand what SPF means and which ingredients offer effective protection? If you aren’t … read on
Consider benefits versus risksLast spring I went to Florida for spring break and was attacked by sand fleas. I had about a million (okay, about 70) bites over both legs, and I wrote a post about my attempts to find relief.
In short, nothing really worked other than ice packs and cool baths—cool skin decreases blood flow, which deceases the amount of histamine, which decreases the itchiness.
This … read on