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Showing posts from May 18, 2010

Skin Cancer: Saving Your Skin From Sun Damage

Why is the sun so bad for my skin? The sun's rays, which are called ultraviolet A and ultraviolet B rays (UVA and UVB rays) damage your skin. This leads to early wrinkles, skin cancer and other skin problems. Being in the sun often over time, even if you don't burn, can lead to skin cancer. A tan is the body's attempt to protect itself from the sun's harmful rays. Are tanning booths safer? No. Tanning booths use ultraviolet rays. Makers of the booths may claim that they use "harmless" UVA rays. But both UVA and UVB rays cause skin damage. While UVA rays take longer than UVB rays to damage the skin, they go deeper into the skin than UVB rays. On what parts of the body is skin cancer most likely to occur? Most skin cancers occur on parts of the body that are repeatedly exposed to the sun. These areas include the head, neck, face, tips of the ears, hands, forearms, shoulders, back, chests of men, and the back and lower legs of women.   What are t