Prevention

Most people in New Zealand know that exposure to Ultra Violet Light [UV] from the sun is damaging to the skin. It is usually a surprise just how common skin cancer is however, with over 70,000 cases a year in NZ for a population of 4million.

What is UV?

UV is a form of radiation emitted from the sun, and it is invisible to the naked eye. It is usually divided into 3 groups, A, B & C.

UVA is linked to cell aging and long term skin damage and is implicated in some skin cancers, but thought not to be as harmful as

UVB, this causes sunburn and direct damage to cells DNA, and is thought to cause most types of skin cancer.

UVC does not penetrate our atmosphere much and is low risk.

Whilst short term exposure to UV causes sunburn and tanning, long term leads to loss of skin elasticity, discolouration and pre-cancerous condition such as solar keratosis as well as skin cancer.

---

The UV index
This measures the amount of UV reaching the earth around midday, and is a relative scale from where 1 is low and 10 is extreme. It gives a more objective measure than 'time to burn'.
It is projected daily for the country and can be found on the NIWA site.

---

Who is at risk?
In New Zealand, the short answer is everyone, and anyone outdoors at anytime in the day should take precautions.
It is a myth that you cannot burn on a cloudy day, water vapour provides no protection from UV. As sunburn is thought to cause skin cancer, anything that prevents sunburn is effective.

Those with lighter skin are more likely to burn, but those with the following should be especially careful in the sun.

Appearance

• Have lots of moles, irregular moles, or large moles
• Have freckles and burn before tanning
• Have fair skin or blond, red, or light brown hair

Family History

• Were previously treated for skin cancer
• Have a family history of skin cancer, especially melanoma
• Work indoors all week and then get a tan on weekends

Occupation

• Spend a lot of time outdoors

Medical History

• Have certain autoimmune diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE, or “lupus”)
• Have had an organ transplant
• Take medicines that lower your immunity
• Take oral contraceptives (birth control pills)
• Take tetracycline, sulfa drugs or certain other antibiotics
• Take naproxen sodium or certain other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs
• Take phenothiazines (major tranquilizers and anti-nausea drugs)
• Take tricyclic antidepressants
• Take thiazide diuretics (medicines used for high blood pressure and some heart conditions)
• Take sulfonylureas (a form of oral anti-diabetic medication)

If in doubt consult your family doctor or drop us a line>>

Move on to sunscreen and tips for adults and kids>>