Lifestyle Choices

Sunlight is electromagnetic radiation, which is similar to X-rays but of lower energy. The sun’s energy reaching the earth’s surface can be broadly subdivided into 1) infrared (the lowest energy that can be felt as heat); 2) visible light; and 3) ultraviolet (the highest energy that affects the skin). The ultraviolet spectrum is, in turn, divided into three bands — the “ultra-V three” — each of which causes a different, specific, and most unwelcome effect.

UVC

The highest energy ultraviolet band, ultraviolet C (UVC), is potentially the most damaging to skin, but all of this ultraviolet C is screened by the ozone layer high in the earth’s atmosphere. This radiation is very dangerous, in fact, UVC lamps are actually used in biological laboratories and operating rooms to disinfect and kill germs!

UVB

The mid-energy range is ultraviolet B (UVB). UVB energy causes the most serious damage to the skin because its wavelengths interact directly with the DNA of our genes. It is the UVB that is most intense in the midday sun and in summer when the sun is closest to the earth. UVB radiation causes sunburn, wrinkles, unattractive dark spots, and also skin cancer.

UVA

Ultraviolet A (UVA) is the lowest energy range of ultraviolet radiation. Contrary to previous beliefs, UVA is far from harmless. Unlike UVB, which in temperate latitudes only significantly penetrates the atmosphere between 10am-4pm (with marked increases in summer months), levels of UVA are virtually constant throughout the day and throughout the year.

There is much more UVA than UVB reaching us at any one moment (by a factor ranging from 100- to 1000-fold, depending on time of day, season, and geographic location). UVA radiation even penetrates glass, so you are exposed when you stand near a window or travel in a car.

Although UVA may be the least damaging of the ultra-V three, it penetrates the skin more deeply than UVB, reaching right down to the dermis where it destroys collagen and elastic tissue and causes those dreaded wrinkles along with decreased elasticity and the appearance of aging. UVA is the cause of potentially serious photosensitizing reactions. To make matters worse, UVA suppresses the skin’s immune system, thereby increasing susceptibility to infections and possibly skin cancer.

The aggressive and intrusive combination of UVA and UVB radiation is out there, waiting to do damage to your skin and body, and in the longer term to threaten your health.

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