Don’t Fry Day
As much as I love the sun, slathering on sunscreen has always been a top priority for me. Although I have yet to revert to a body lotion with SPF, I’ve recently bumped up my facial moisturizer to one that has an SPF 50.
Much of my penchant for sunscreen stems from the fact that overexposure to the sun’s rays can lead to premature aging. I don’t think I’d be very happy if I start getting wrinkles earlier than I should be. But apart from the reality of getting old, I’m also quite certain that skin cancer is a threat that’s here to stay. Thus the only way I could prevent it is if I start being serious about my sun safety habits.
For starters, I am going to embark on a monthly self examination to make sure that all the moles I have and will be having are safe and stays safe. According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, the warning signs for skin cancer are:
- A skin growth that increases in size and appears pearly, translucent, tan, brown, black, or multicolored
- A mole, birthmark, beauty mark, or any brown spot that:
- changes color
- increases in size or thickness
- changes in texture
- is irregular in outline
- is bigger than 6mm or 1/4”, the size of a pencil eraser
- appears after age 21 - A spot or sore that continues to itch, hurt, crust, scab, erode, or bleed
- An open sore that does not heal within three weeks
I may have a few moles I’m concerned about so I should probably try and schedule an appointment with a specialist as soon as I can. To be very honest, I have one birthmark I’m particularly dying (no pun intended) to have someone take a look at. Apart from the knowledge of finally knowing if it’s cancerous or not is the fact that I’m also hoping to have it removed.
Anyway, let’s all try and be safe now. With the current condition of our ozone layer and the real threat of global warming, the harmful UVA/UVB rays are beating down on us more than ever.
***May is also known as Skin Cancer Awareness Month.
