In summer we spend most of our time exposing ourselves to the sun without remembering to protect our skin by using sunscreens that avoid receiving burns, or in some cases, complicating and becoming dangerous.
As Dr. Francisco José Ferrando Roca, a dermatologist at Hospital La Salud de Valencia , and member of the Spanish Academy of Dermatology and Venereology (AEDV) warns in an interview with Infosalus , sunburns are dangerous to health due to the potential development of tumors malignant skin diseases throughout our lives.
“The skin has memory and each sunburn causes DNA damage in the affected skin cell”
Tips for safe sun exposure
With all this, Dr. Francisco José Ferrando Roca, dermatologist at Hospital La Salud de Valencia, advises the following tips to expose ourselves to the sun these days and safely:
Choose a protector according to the phototype of the people according to the age or area of the body where it is going to be applied and the environmental conditions to which the individual is going to be subjected.
Prepare the skin for sunbathing by keeping it clean (without makeup or other cosmetics) and hydrated. Avoid the use of colognes, perfumes and deodorants as they can cause photosensitization reactions and skin blemishes.
Avoid direct sun exposure at 4 o’clock around solar noon.
Apply the product at least half an hour before exposure occurs on well dry skin.
Repeat the application whenever necessary, depending on the individual characteristics and the activity to be carried out. In any case, it is recommended not to exceed 2-3 hours.
Use lip sunscreen with a high index, since the skin in this area of the body is very fragile.
Drink plenty of water and juices during and after exposure to promote physiological thermoregulatory mechanisms and to replace the loss of fluids experienced as a result of heat.
Strengthen protective measures with the use of hats, caps, glasses and other clothing made with natural fabrics that allow easy perspiration.
Avoid spraying water during sunbathing since, in addition to eliminating the sunscreen, the drops of water that remain on the skin act as if they were a magnifying glass and amplify the negative effects of radiation.
After sun exposure and a shower with lukewarm water, generously moisturize the skin to regenerate the hydrolipidic layer and recover the loss of water. The use of specific products is recommended depending on the type of skin and the area to be treated: face and décolleté, eye contour, hands.
