America is losing the war against skin cancer, in fact about one person will be diagnosed with skin cancer about every hour. According to the World Health Organization One in every three cancers diagnosed is a skin cancer and, according to Skin Cancer Foundation Statistics, one in every five Americans will develop skin cancer in their lifetime. Melanoma is one of the most devastating forms because it is the most deadly forms. Melanoma, the most serious type of skin cancer, will accounted for about 68,130 cases of skin cancer in 2010 and most (about 8,700) of the 11,790 deaths due to skin cancer each year. Having such a concern for the deadly nature of skin cancer makes people want to do everything possible to help themselves and their children avoid it, thus we fear the sun.
Did you know that there are more than 1,000 different types of sunscreen on the market today? Studies have proven that 4 out of 5 sunblocks do not even protect the user from harmful UV rays, and may even contain extremely harmful chemicals. Studies have found that popular sunscreen companies such as Coppertone and Neutrogena are among the highest sold sunblocks, but they also are among the poorest quality of sunscreens on the market.
Myth: Sunlight is Bad for You and Your Kids.
Truth: Without sunlight everything dies.
Myth: Sunlight causes skin cancer
Truth: If that were true everyone would have cancer.
Myth: More SPF sun block helps avoid skin cancer:
Truth: Some SPF sun block may help avoid sunburns, but also may increase rates of skin cancer.
Myth: Too much sun is what causes skin cancer
Truth: Too many toxic chemicals in skin lotions that interact with certain UV radiation is what causes cancer. More lotions = more cancer…thus why America is so bad comparatively.
Myth: America has high rates of skin cancer because we have more fair skinned population.
Truth: America uses more lotions than other countries, because other warmer climate “Sun” countries also have fair skinned people as well, with less skin cancer.
TRUTH: Skin Cancer Up in America
TRUTH: Sunscreen Sales UP in America
To get started, first off you should know that sunlight is made up of 3 different wavelengths. These are known as Ultraviolet A(UVA), Ultraviolet B(UVB), and finally you guessed it Ultraviolet C(UVC). UVB is the good type of light that helps our bodies to produce the vitamin D that each of us need. When you apply sunscreen to your body, you are blocking your body’s natural ability to create vitamin D which is created through sunlight. With so many millions of people using sunblock, healthcare professionals have seen an outrageous increase of those with vitamin D deficiency. This deficiency is the main cause for more than 16 different types of cancer and diseases which claim more than a million lives each year. Just to name a few to give you an idea:
Multiple Sclerosis & Osteoporosis
Inflammatory Bowel disease
Heart Disease
Diabetes
Rheumatoid arthritis
One chemical that is found in almost every sunscreen product is Oxybenzone. This chemical interferes with your body’s hormonal system and will release free radicals that actually aid in the development of skin cancers. Another chemical that is in almost every product is Nano Particles. These are added to make the sunscreen rub in clear on your skin. The Nano Particles may actually disrupt your immune systems ability to function correctly. European sunblock companies all abide by a certain code that guarantees all of the products made in Europe have meaningful protection against harmful UVA rays. They all use compounds such as Tinosorb and Mexoryl which has been proven to be safe and effective in blocking the bad UV rays. These compounds are not approved for use in the USA. This is one reason why the US has some of the highest numbers for skin cancer in the world.
If your fear is cancer focus on boosting your body’s ability to fight cancer.
Being an informed health participant you should know or investigate further for yourself that the majority of sunscreen products are a scam, and they can actually aide in causing cancer instead of preventing it. The more consumers use sunscreen products, the greater the risk getting cancer. One major impact that helps your body fight any cancer is your body’s production of a Super Power Nutrient Vitamin D. By effectively blocking UV sunlight you are blocking your body’s ability to fight cancer. Vitamin D is the body’s most powerful anti-cancer medicine, and studies have demonstrated recently that it can prevent the majority of all cancers in women, including skin cancer, cervical cancer, breast cancer, lung cancer, and brain cancer.
Additionally boosting the body’s Glutathione. The combination of detoxification and free radical protection results in glutathione being one of the most important cancer and aging fighters in our cells. Dietary glutathione intake is associated with protection against some forms of cancer.1,2 Asparagus is a leading source of glutathione. Foods like broccoli (2), avocado and spinach are also known to boost glutathione levels. Raw eggs, garlic and fresh unprocessed meats contain high levels of sulphur-containing amino acids and help to maintain optimal glutathione levels. (3)
Your skin is the most sensitive organ on your body. Everything you lather into your skin is absorbed directly into your blood system. Children have much more sensitive skin than adults, and absorb chemicals much faster than adults; this is one reason why it is so important to read about sunscreen before applying it to your children. Many natural doctors say not to put anything on your skin that you wouldn’t eat. These sunblocks all contain harmful chemicals and every time you rub it into your skin, you are basically eating it. There are a few natural sunscreens found in the US that actually do the right job.
When your next family outing is in the sun, I hope that you will take into consideration all of these facts that I have wrote about. Kids are our future, and with so many little ones now with cancer, in fact the number one cause of death in kids ages 5-9 today for America is Cancer I hope that you will think twice about rubbing in that chemical filled sunblock into their sensitive skin.
The simplest way to naturally protect yourself and your family from sunburn instead of resorting to the toxic chemical sunscreens is to wear a long sleeved shirt, pants and a hat after you’ve reached your limit of sun exposure.
I think it’s fair to say that those toxic money making chemical sunscreens are not the best option any more.
Another safer and simple solution is to find an all-natural, non-toxic chemical sunscreen. There are several on the market, but my favorite is Natural Sunscreen or Seleo Organics which carries a non chemical sunscreen made without using the nasty Nano Particles. This sunscreen is made from using zinc oxide, plant extracts and green tea extract. This is almost good enough to eat!
Instead of toxic potentially carcinogenic chemicals each active ingredient in these outstanding product have been carefully chosen to specifically protect and nourish your skin. In addition to UVA/UVB-protecting titanium dioxide and zinc oxide, it contains only all-natural ingredients such as:
Vitamins A, D and E
Coconut oil
Jojoba oil
Shea butter
Eucalyptus oil
I would recommend Dr. Mercola’s USDA Certified Organic Body Butter. According to Dr. Mercola, “it works really great as a post tanning lotion, or to soften your skin after a swim (especially if you’re going to the pool as chlorinated water is very harsh, and dries out your skin).”
1)Sen CK. Nutritional biochemistry of cellular glutathione. Nutr Biochem 1997;8:660-72.
2)Flagg EW, Coates RJ, Jones DP, et al. Dietary glutathione intake and the risk of oral and pharyngeal cancer. Am J Epidemiol 1994;139:453-65.
3) Dietary approach to attenuate oxidative stress, hypertension, and inflammation in the cardiovascular system Wu L, Ashraf MH, Facci M, Wang R, Paterson PG, Ferrie A, Juurlink BH. [Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2004 May 4;101(18):7094-9. Epub 2004 Apr 21.]
