HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — UV Safety Awareness Month is recognized annually in July, so there’s no better time to discuss ways to safeguard skin to sun exposure.
One thing to consider — there are multiple skin types in people, so how the heat directly impacts you is determined on a case-by-case basis.
Your skin is your largest and most important organ so make caring for it a priority. That’s according to Dr. Deborah Quinn, a dermatologist and nurse practitioner with Clarity Acne & Aesthetic Dermatology in Suffolk.
“You can get dehydrated, which could cause your skin to become very dry,” Quinn said. “You could be very oily. And then heat and sweat would make you make more oil, thus causing acne exacerbation. You could be on hormone supplements and then the sun and the heat would cause melasma and some hyperpigmentation.”
No matter the category your skin falls under, sunscreen is still a universal concept.
“Lighter skin tones are going to need to reapply sunblock more frequently,” she said. “Darker skin tones have a little bit more built-in melanin, so they have more protection, but they still need sun block. Darker skin-toned individuals sometimes think they don’t need block, but they do. And it is for sun protection in helping reduce the risk of skin cancer, early aging, but also pigmentation is a big problem.”
While people of all backgrounds spend extended periods of time in the sun during the warmer months, no one is exempt from the harmful effects of long-term sun exposure. Quinn pointed out that when you’re getting sun damage, you’re essentially changing your DNA.
“Immediately, we know the flushing and the redness,” she said. “You can get these little red, dry, itchy, scaly patches which are considered pre-cancerous. They’re called actinic keratosis. You can get some mottled pigmentation that’s kind of like a red and brown mixture called derma. You can have thickening of the skin, almost like your skin turns elastic, called ptosis. And then, I guess worsens actual outright, skin cancer. So, these pre-cancerous lesions tend to, over time, come and go. But then they can transform into Squamous cell carcinoma, different types of basal cell carcinoma. And then the worst, actually most mostly from sun exposure is melanoma.”
She also recommends wearing sun protection not only outdoors, but indoors as well.
“Computer screens and phone screens emit light, fluorescent lighting in offices,” Quinn said. “So, if you’re going to be at work all day, you actually still need some sunblock, because that’s going to be light blocking and just like lights that grow plants, well, that light stimulates cells in your skin too. So even if you’re going to be in the office, you should have some sunblock on.”
Changes in climate will always impact how your skin functions, especially one that’s hot and humid like Hampton Roads. For this area, transients and locals are advised to use light moisturizers, avoid over-exfoliation and use glycolic or salicylic acid washes.
