Save Your Skin from Damaging Ultraviolet Rays

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If you’re thinking about tanning your skin for the season, all of us at Affiliated Foot & Ankle Center offer this advice: don’t do it. You may think a tan makes you look healthy, but tanned skin is damaged, pure, and simple. Any amount of tan is too much. Furthermore, every time you get a tan (or worse, a burn), your risk of skin damage and skin cancer increases.

Tanned or burned skin is a result of exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays. July is UV Safety Awareness Month, so it’s the perfect time to teach our Monmouth County patients about the damaging effects of UV rays on their skin. Here’s what we know for sure:

  • Harmful UV rays come from the sun and tanning beds.

  • Tanning beds emit the worst, most damaging kind of UV rays.

  • The longer and more often you’re exposed to UV rays without protection, the greater your risk of skin damage and skin cancer.

Take steps to protect your skin, including the skin on your feet and ankles, from both premature aging and several types of skin cancer. Here’s what you can do:

  1. Wear sunscreen every time you’re in the sun. Remember always to slather your feet with sunscreen – the tops for sure, but also the bottoms if you’re going to be lying in the sun with your delicate soles exposed.

  2. Watch the clock. Be extra careful or, better yet, seek the shade between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm when the sun’s UV rays are at their strongest.

  3. Check the calendar. UV rays are strongest during the summer, but can also be very strong in the winter as they reflect off the snow.

  4. Don’t let the clouds cloud your judgment. The sun’s rays pass through the clouds, so you still need to protect your skin, even if it’s not bright and sunny.

  5. Wear protective clothing: long sleeves, long pants, clothes with built-in sun protection, a wide-brimmed hat, and sunglasses to protect your eyes.

  6. Check the UV Index in your area using this handy search tool from the Environmental Protection Agency. The higher the index number, the greater your need for protection.

  7. Never use tanning beds and teach your kids the same rule.

Check your feet regularly for signs of skin cancer. Report any troublesome lesions to our board-certified podiatrists, Dr. Samantha Boyd, Dr. Hal Ornstein, Dr. Dan Phan, and Dr. Joseph Saka. For a consultation at our Howell or Jackson podiatry offices, call (732) 905-1110 or contact us online.