The Importance Of Sunscreen

Way too many people take sunscreen for granted. Too many people don't use sunscreen to protect their skin from sundamage and it really bothers me. So today I want to contend and stress why it's so important to use an SPF. I may appear to be a sunscreen-nazi (and trust me I've been called that name before) but I want to get it out there. Here we go:



Sunburns:
Getting sunburned hurts. It really does. You look like a tomato and probably also feel like one. Did I mention it hurts? Showering hurts, touching it hurts, laying on it hurts. I know, I know this is not a very serious way of putting it, but really watch out. Sunburns are also dangerous, I'll explain that below (in a serious way).

Skincancer:
This is one of the most obvious. UV exposure can cause chemical reactions in the skin which can directly and indirectly damage protein and DNA, causing cells to die or function abnormally. The "abnormal functioning" could be melanoma, which is basically a tumor. An evil tumor. The survival rate of melanoma is about 91%, if it's discovered in a beginner stadium. In later stadiums chance of survival could be as low as 30%.
A simple method to prevent all this is preventing sun burns. How do you do this? That's right! Sunscreen. And also quit smoking, it also increases risks of skin cancer (and lung cancer).

Wrinkles:
We all get wrinkles when we're getting older (except for Will Smit, the guy doesn't seem to age :P ), but could we just take a minute and look at this man's face to see what the sun does to your face?:

This man was a truck driver for years. Only one side of his face saw the sun all that time. Can you quess which side it is?
I was quite shocked when I saw this picture the first time. I knew that the sun caused damage, but that it would be this bad was eye opening.

Pigmentation:
Did you ever see the little dark spots (usually) older people have? Well, they're not only caused by old age, but also by the sun. When we're younger pigmentation usually comes in the form of wreckles. The only place my boyfriend has wreckles is on his shoulders because he got sunburned really bad two years ago.
When we get older the pigmentation comes in the form of dark spots. It could be on your face, your hands, your legs, etc. but in any case it doesn't look nice. Dark spots (or age spots) are usually not dangerous, but if they thicken, have a highly irregular border or thicken please get them checked.

 I hope this was enough to convince you. If not, tell me because I will make another post with more dangers and scary pictures to scare you into sunscreen!

How often do you use sunscreen?

♥ Love, Vivian