Confused on How Much Sun is Enough?
Over the last few months, I’ve been more aware of what’s been in the media about skin cancer & sun exposure. The majority of what I am seeing on TV and magazine advertisements, seems to be mega scare tactics about getting skin cancer & that you should avoid the sun altogether. This is contrary to what I wrote a few posts ago regarding an article in the Age newspaper here in Melbourne where doctors & researchers are highlighting the negative impacts of insufficient sunlight & Vitamin D.
So I was very heartened when reading a magazine recently announcing that the Cancer Council of Australia has issued new guidelines on the amount of sun exposure Australians need to stay healthy.
The Cancer council admits that the sun provides Vitamin D which they say is essential for strong, healthy bones - unfortunately they don’t really expand on the true benefits of vitamin D obtained from the sun, such as an elevated mood (good for treating depression) and a major boost to your immune system, which consequently can reduce the incidence of cancer. Ironic that the very sunshine that people are afraid will cause skin cancers, can actually lower the incidence of major cancers such as breast cancer & colon cancer.
The notification continues with the obligatory warnings that too much sun can increase the risk of skin cancer. According to the Council, fair-skinned people can maintain adequate levels of vitamin D in summer from a few minutes of sun exposure around the peak UV periods (10am-2pm) on most days of the week. In winter, in southern Australia, where UV rays are less intense, you need 2-3 hours of sunlight over a week.
Really it comes down to some common sense - I think that just like we need to eat good food every day, some sun exposure every day is also essential - without sunscreen. A few minutes if your skin reddens quickly, a few minutes more if you tan easily. You know what your skin does so take the guidelines and tailor them to you.
And if you plan to be in the sun for longer that a few minutes (up to about 10 minutes), then at least use a sunscreen that doesn’t contain harmful ingredients - I’ll talk about that in another post.
