I may ruffle a lot of feathers by saying this, but I honestly don't believe the sun causes skin cancer. How is it possible that the one thing that gives life, that causes plants to grow big and strong, can give us humans skin cancer?
How is it possible that elephants baking in the hot Indian Sun, zebras running wild across the Serengeti, or monkeys swinging under the hot African sun do not get skin cancer?
What is it that seperates us from these animals (some monkeys being as close to 98% the same genetic make-up as us humans) and gives US skin cancer?
1) Our poor diet/lifestyle
2) The chemicals we put on our skin.
I'm going to address the second issue here, our skin care. Go to where you keep your skincare and bring back your facewash, toner, and moisturizer... Read the ingredients. Any google search can tell you what the ingredients in your skincare do. Let me address some of the obvious ingredients.
Propylene Glycol - is used in cosmetics as a binding agent and to create a "rich" feel. In other uses, it is an AIRCRAFT ANTI-FREEZE, used to TRAP, KILL and PRESERVE bugs, etc. It is known to dry out your skin, but the manufacturers try to cover this up by adding other ingredients that fake the feeling that your skin is hydrated, while deep down inside it is actually dry and dehydrated.
Mineral Oil - aka Paraffinum Liquidum, Paraffin, is used a "moisturizing" ingredient in skincare, even though it is NOT absorbeable by your skin. It is extremely comedogenic...making your skin break out. In Industrial uses, Mineral Oil is used to coat metalics to prevent rusting/oxidization. Imagine what this means for your skin; it coats your skin, preventing it from breathing, preventing it from absorbing atmospheric moisture, preventing it from releasing toxins from your body (Your skin releases almost as much waste from your body as your COLON does).
Go ahead and google the rest of your skincare ingredients...
Skin cancer is a fairly new phenomenon in human history. I think it is directly related with the Industrial Revolution, and the nasty chemicals that came along with it.
You often have many of the ingredients for natural skin care/ body care already at home in your possession. They are not expensive to acquire, and often have a fairly long shelf life. The products that do "expire" fairly quickly are the ones that you would probably eat before they go bad, such as yoghurt.
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You ARE ruffling my feathers! Hahaha.. while I agree that I think there are a lot of harmful things out there that people put on their skin, I don't think we can deny that the sun does cause skin damage and in some cases, forms of cancer.
ReplyDeleteI see your point, and I know where you are coming from. I think our lifestyles cause many forms of cancer, and probably some skin cancers. But I know that the sun can cause skin problems and skin cancer. You can't compare us to animals (or humans for that matter) that live in different parts of the world, because obviously we have evolved differently for our climates.
I don't want to deny the health benefits of the sun. 10 minutes in the sun can provide soo much more vitamin D than any supplement. But I've seen first hand .. on my Dad's own face... the harm that sun can do. He has (had?) pre cancerous cells and had to go through pretty brutal treatments (i.e. getting his face blasted frozen, getting chunks.. yes chunks, dug out of the side of his nose) and this is, without a doubt, caused from sun damage. We have fair skin........ obviously this isn't going to happen for everyone. But I definitely live in fear of a sunburn!!
There is no denying that getting sun burns, especially repeated sun burns, can cause skin cells to mutate - leading to skin cancer, and the aging of the skin. However, I am AGAINST the use of chemical sunscreen. I think there is definitely more risk with putting dangerous chemicals on your face. I rarely wear sunscreen, but when I know I'm going to be outside for a while. I use a natural sunscreen that is completely chemical free and utilizes a PHYSICAL sunscreen, such as Zinc Oxide or Titanium Dioxide (the ONLY two forms of physical sunscreen). I almost always wear a hat and ALWAYS wear sunglasses that provide SPF protection for the eyes.
ReplyDeleteAlso, studies show that skin cancer forms from the outside in. Meaning if you exfoliate on a regular basis, you are reducing your chances of skin cancer.
I have to say that after years of intensive dermatological care, I agree with the fact that the sun is most probably not a carcinogen. I am always suspicious of the reports of any industry that stands to make a profit by disseminating certain information (go figure- I'm in the U.S. and have to deal with the U.S. health care system).
ReplyDeletePharmaceutical (or so-called "Cosmeceutical") companies who make chemical sunscreens such as Parsol and Mexoryl have a lot to gain in profit by perpetuating the idea that the sun will kill you.
The sun's P.R department isn't as well-paid.....
That said, I do believe STRONGLY in the use of the broad-spectrum barrier sunscreens (Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide), in a formulation that is equal to at least SPF 30 (SPF 60+ is better) because the sun does cause pigmentation (we all have melanin) and even if you tan evenly and perfectly, there;s still a chance you'll develop sunspots, solar lentigos, age spots, and even melasma (if you're really unlucky and have uneven pigmentation (Latin and South East Asian skins develop melasma most often).
I use sunscreen all day, every day if I know I'll be outside. Even if it's cloudy, because for me, it's not worth the hyperpigmentation nightmare.