Depends on the time of year. But my dermatologist says even my face seeing the sun through my car windows in winter is enough to require sunscreen.
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If the sunscreen you use is fully opaque, like a burqua, probably itās just vitamin D, or whatever else our skin does with sunlight. Iām not convinced we know everything about how our skin reacts to sunlight, though.
But also, most sunscreen selectively blocks some frequencies and not others. The sunscreen that was on the market when i was a kid blocked a lot more UVA than UVB, and may have increased the skin cancer risk of those who used a lot of it, since it extended the time you could sit in the sun without burning, without protecting you from the light that penetrates deeper and is riskier for cancer. Todayās doesnāt make that mistake, but it may very well make some other mistake.
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Iāve seen some prominent talking heads mention certain chemicals that are in sunscreens (spray only, I think?) that your body absorbs in to your bloodstream and then MAY negatively interact with your brain/neurons. Read a few articles here and there so donāt have any studies or science to back up the claims. I think this is what may have people concerned?
Iām always nervous? cautious? curious? idk the right word but I do wonder about the long-term effects of chemicals on our overall health. Experts may claim that the amount of these chemicals in sunscreen is so small it wouldnāt have any adverse effects on your health. Which is encouraging but it seems like those claims are related to short-term/immediate-ish impacts? I compare it to smoking or heart disease. How many cigarettes would we have to rip to die on the spot? Probably a lot. I donāt actually know the number, but Iām guessing its a crazy amount. How many Happy Meals would we have to guzzle down for us to keel over because our heart was all clogged up? Probably an impossibly large amount. But we know that smoking cigarettes and eating crap food like McDonalds will eventually lead to serious adverse effects on our health long-term.
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That fusion fueled plasma ball in the sky has been there for the entirety of our evolutionary history. The assertion that a little winter sunlight on your face poses a significant risk worthy of a chemical barrier is extreme. Iāve had derms tell me the same thing. Iāve discussed it with my current derm and she agrees that physically limiting sun exposure with clothes or access to shade makes sense and is a good approach. The key is to not burn.
Are you especially fair skinned? I am, but also Iām sure the derm was just saying what she says to everyone. I did invest in some Eucerin sunscreen. Eucerin is known for good skin care.
It still kind of blows me away that the weird sandpaper spot on my arm is nothing to be concerned about, but the tiny invisible sore on my nose that she missed was a precancer thing. I think Iām getting the one on my arm removed this year bc it gets itchy.
Iām Fitzpatrick skin type III - fair skin but can tan. I have to be mindful of my exposure because I will mos def burn if not careful. I had severe sunburns as a child and in my youth so I get annual full body exams for skin cancer.
I donāt tan at allāexcept that in high school I figured out that I could do 30 minutes a day and tan without burning. That was in Colorado. Older and wiser me wonders if that may have been worse for my skin than the sunburns I had as a kid.
What changed? You could tan before but not now?
I could only tan if I limited myself to 30 minutes a day and if I did it every day. What working adult has time to tan every day?
Even then I wasnāt tan, just not as light as usual.
More than 30 minutes and I would burn. Probably bc I thought SPF 8 was good and no one knew anything about reapplying sunscreen in the 80ās.
Does combining freckles count as a tan?
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That sounds like you tan. I mean, it doesnāt sound you like can get a dark cosmetically-appealing tan, but your skin tans, probably enough to give you a little protection.
The sunscreens in the 80s WERE dangerous, as i indicated above. Yeah, that might be related to that little precancerous sore you found.
I have pale skin and eyes. And i donāt wear sunglasses, never liked them. And bright sun hurt my pale eyes. So as a kid, i always sought out shade. And i think thatās why my skin is still in pretty good shape.
Every year i see a dermatologist to look at my hide. (My father and maternal grandmother both had skin cancer. And i have pale skin with moles and freckles.) And every year they advise me to use sunscreen. And every year i tell them i avoid sunscreen, unless Iām going to spend a day at the beach or something. And every year they tell me, āwell, whatever you are doing seems to workā. Thatās about 8 different dermatologists, as the clinic i go to has a lot of turnover.
Anyway, i wouldnāt advise you to try to tan. But i donāt think itās healthy to completely avoid the sun, either. Iām with yoyo on this. Avoid burning, make use of clothing and shade, and get a little sun without overdoing it.
My personal observation is that my skin does better with lots of short exposures than with a single longer one. Dappled shade is my friend. When walking on sunny streets, i pop in and out of the shadows.
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I mostly wear a hat + sunscreen if Iām out and about in summer. And Iāll keep trying to use sunscreen more. But like today, Iām leaving my house to get a massage. Sheāll likely use some oils or lotion and Iād rather not have a base of sunscreen on my arms. I wonāt actually be outside for long at all.
I do take a vitamin D supplement and I drink milk. So not super worried but will check in a few months as I was low last June. (Thatās when I started supplementing.)
If that counted Iād be in!
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Eat protein
Eat fiber
Drink water
Wear sunscreen
Get sleep
Avoid added sugars
Stick to whole foods
I try, but I fail usually.
Too often Iām lazy and eat processed foods like chicken tenders instead of making my own thighs or something.
Iām working on getting more fiber and sleep.
I recently started taking a small amount (~4-6g) Essential Amino Acids (EAAs) in between meals in the morning and afternoon. This was a result of my SO having us listen to a podcast on a road trip that discussed the below study.
One of the main takeaways is that ingesting EAAs stimulates Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS, aka building new muscle) more than an equivalent amount of whey protein or protein from a normal meal. Kind of neat.
It very easily could be placebo effect, but since I started taking this, Iāve noticed my recovery has increased significantly. Gone are the days where Iād be sore 4-5 days after a particularly intense workout. I still get sore, sure, but Iād say itās limited to 1-2 days after a workout.