Sunscreen? Better a hat and an awning!
The reliability of sunscreen cosmetics is exaggeratedABC Magazine
A group of scientists from the USA came to the conclusion that staying in the shade and wearing hats and closed clothes protects the skin from burns and possible development of skin cancer much more reliably than widely advertised sunscreens.
The results of this discovery (Linos et al., Hat, shade, long sleeves, or sunscreen? Rethinking US sun protection messages based on their relative effectiveness) are published in the July issue of the journal Cancer Causes & Control.
The researchers analyzed data collected during the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which was conducted in the United States from 2003 to 2006. They studied questionnaires of 3,052 white Americans, which, among other things, described how often the respondents use sunscreen, escape from the heat in the shade or by wearing hats and long sleeves, and also indicated the frequency of sunburn they received over the past year.
Although the use of sunscreens turned out to be the most common habit of Americans (30 percent of the questionnaires), their frequent use was by no means accompanied by a low percentage of the frequency of sunburn. And those who hid in the shade in the heat (25 percent) or wore a hat (16 percent) and clothes with long sleeves (6 percent), "burned" in the sun 30 percent less often. This ratio remained true even after the researchers excluded factors such as skin sensitivity (its phototype), alcohol consumption, time of year, physical activity, gender, age, education and income level of sunbathers.
"I am very pleased with the results of the study," admitted Ronald P. Rapini, professor, head of the Department of Dermatology at the Dr. Anderson Center for Cancer Research at the University of Houston (University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston), Texas, USA. — I always thought that way and tried to warn my patients. The problem is that sunscreens give us an illusory feeling of complete protection from the sun — we smear them and sunbathe for hours, convinced that we have completely protected ourselves from burns. But this is not the case. Just last week, one of my patients came to see me. He was diagnosed with melanoma, and he came to my appointment with a huge sunburn on his entire back. When I asked him how it happened, he replied that he used sunscreen, but could not reach his back and smear it — it happens so often with each of us. Remember: the less sun, the lower the risk of burns, so it's better to try to stay in the shade."
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru21.07.2011