May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month!

Check with your local hospital for a free Skin Cancer Screening. Many hospitals are having the free screenings during this month to help people become aware of Skin Cancer.

Summer is Suntan season and it is so important to use the proper Suntan Lotion with a good sun screen, SPF of 30 or more, to prevent skin damage from the sun. Children are especially susceptible to skin damage and early sunburns can lead to skin cancer in later life.

In an article posted on the American Cancer Educational Services site, Jodi Mailaner-Farrel of the Miami Herald gives you the following information. Five things you didn't know about skin cancer.

1. We know wearing sunscreen daily is one of the best ways to prevent skin cancer, but now evidence suggests that what we eat could help reduce the risk, too. In a study published this year in the journal In Vivo, vitamin C, green tea and an amino acid found in beans, soybeans, lentils, meat, poultry, fish and dairy suppressed melanoma tumor growth in mice.

2. You don't have to get burned to increase your risk of skin cancer. Sun damage is incremental and accumulates over a lifetime. Don't think throwing a shirt on will help you. The average white T-shirt has a sun protection factor (SPF) of only 4 to 6!

3. Although 75% of skin cancer cases aren't deadly, some 10,000 people are still expected to die from skin cancer this year alone. Half of all cases of melanoma, the most dangerous kind, occur in people under age 57.

4. Dermatologists recommend monthly self monitoring of freckles, mole and birthmarks for any changes over time. Use a hand held mirror to inspect hard to see areas. One third of melanomas in men occur on the back.

5. The upper and lower eyelids are two of the most common places on the face where skin cancer can occur, according to the skin cancer foundation. Wear wrap around, UV blocking sun glasses for the best protection or a hat with a three to four inch wide brim.

I found them very interesting and will keep them in mind when going out in the sun.

Please take care of your children and yourselves this spring and summer. (really all year round as sun refection on snow can be very bad also)

Leigh