Sunscreen Use Necessary – No Matter If Your Black or White

As the summer is tapering off, many people might have got a resplendent tan or yet working towards one. Hopefully majority of these tans are bottle/canister derived and people have been diligently donning sunscreen.

A startling but true fact is that there are several folks of colour that virtually do not use sunscreens at all like many from the Afro-American and Hispanic populaces. Their thought process is that they do not require using sun shielding creams/lotions – and this erroneous belief has lead to a distressing rise in melanoma-related deaths among them. Though individuals of color have a tendency of developing skin cancer at a comparatively lesser rate as compared to the Caucasian populace, when these people with darker skin tone do develop skin cancer, their fatality rates mostly surpass that of their white-skinned equivalents.

As per information furnished by the American Medical Association, the 5-year survival rate in case of melanoma is merely fifty-eight percent in people of the Afro-American race in comparison to eighty-four percent among the Caucasian populace. This a mighty disparity, chiefly because of the reality that when skin cancer is diagnosed it has by then advanced to a more lethal staging.

Nationwide, around 1/3rd of people in the U.S. never don sunscreens – this figure doubling in case of persons of color. Almost 2 from 3 Afro-American people never use sunscreens.

Regrettably, several Afro-American people wrongly think that the melanin pigment proffering the darkish skin tone offers shielding from the damaging sun’s rays.

Without a doubt, melanin does offer some extent of shielding, however it is not adequate. It is known that melanin is an innate sunscreen & greater the amount of melanin, better the sun-protection — however to a certain extent. In case of the typically dark skinned people, additional melanin possibly functions as a sun protection factor (SPF) 10 to 15 – mainly shielding from the UV B (ultraviolet B) rays. Melanin pigment offers lesser shielding from UV A (ultraviolet A) rays that are equally harmful. Many dermatologists recommend the regular use of sunscreens with strength of SPF 30 for protecting oneself from the sun’s rays.

A number of Blacks believe that they do not require sunscreen or sun tan lotion since they have never encountered an African-American individual having skin cancer. However, with this faulty thought process that would most probably change sooner rather than later. Even a number of Caucasian people seem to be promoting the fallacy that African-American people or those individuals already having tanned skin do not require sunscreens – which is wide of the mark.

Even physicians are culpable to an extent. They mostly do not conduct skin examinations on a regular basis. All individuals must ensure to request their physician to conduct a skin examination no less than once in a year’s time.

So in case you are a Black or Latino, make it a habit to put on sunscreen along with using protective head gear. Additionally, ensure checking for any types of modifications on the skin (like changed feel, colour, size) or mole formations in regions of the body which are not having pigment like the palm of your hand and sole of the foot. Remember to scrutinize nails of your hands and feet for any irregular spot or strip formations. (Evidently after firstly removing all nail paint traces).