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7 Signs Of Skin Cancer That You Should Never Ignore (#4 Is Weird But True!)
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It’s the good ol’ summertime, and with that summer sun comes more time outside. This is the perfect time to go to the beach, go camping in the woods, take long bike rides with your kids, and get skin cancer.
Well, okay, so you don’t want the last one, but this can happen when you get excessive sun exposure. Almost all living things need the sunlight to survive. Getting sufficient amounts of vitamin D directly from Mr. Sun is one of the best ways to actually deter certain types of cancer. We need sunlight to grow our food, improve our moods, and live a healthy life.
What most people do, however, is the make the sun an all–or-nothing deal. You see people slathered in cocoa butter on the beach, literally frying their skin to make it brown; while on the same beach, you will see people with hats and sunglasses, sitting under umbrellas, slathered in sunscreen. What is really needed here is a happy medium. Like everything in nature, there are good and bad elements to everything. Too much water will drown you; not enough will dehydrate you to death. Too much food will make you obese; not enough will starve your vital organs. The sun is no different. Not enough sun can cause serious health problems; too much sun can damage your skin and eyes, and give you skin cancer.
Be certain that you get plenty of natural vitamin D from the sun (especially in the early morning hours). Start with 10 minutes each day and gradually work yourself up to 30 to 45 minutes of sun exposure. This will give most people enough vitamin D to fight off disease and keep the body working smoothly.
After this, however, you should take reasonable precautions to avoid the sunlight. Excessive sunlight can lead to skin cancer. There are numerous types of skin cancer, some of which are not deadly, but can lead to ugly scars when removed. These include basal cell and squamous cell carcinoma. The worst offender by far, however, is melanoma. When it comes to skin cancer, melanoma causes the majority of deaths. Melanoma develops in cells called melanocytes. These are the cells that produce melanin, the pigment that gives your skin its color. For reasons not yet understood, most women develop this deadly type of skin cancer in their legs, and men develop it most often on their backs.
Although the exact cause of melanoma is not clear, it is generally believed to stem from damage to the DNA caused by overexposure to UV light from the sun.
Your risk of developing skin cancer, and the deadly type melanoma, is increased if you fall into any of the following categories:
- You have a weakened immune system.
- You have a light skin tone.
- You live in areas closer to the equator.
- You have a family history of skin cancer or melanoma.
- You have multiple moles.
- You live at a higher elevation.
- You use sun lights or tanning beds.
- You had one or more serious sunburns (severe enough to cause blisters) as a child.
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Jurgita
Feb 24, 2016 at 9:24 am
This article is very comprehensive and useful! Now I’m reading a lot of articles about cancer, becouse I’m afraid to miss cancer signs. Yesterday I saw the article called First signs of skin cancer. This article also about signs of skin cancer. So thank you for article and good luck!