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By Marie Ruth Auguste A few weeks ago I was vacationing in Spain with some friends. We were four adults at the beach along with three kids, four, three and two years old. It was a beautiful day. The sun was beaming so the beach was crowded with a multitude of people, the majority of them children. The kids were playing in the sand, building a swimming pool and other sand structures. Lucas, the youngest boy I guess was in charge of supplying water, so, he would go fill his bucket and bring it back to fill up the sand made pool. Lucas went back and forth between the water and the sand area, over and over, you know at that age they don't get tired. All the kids were visible to the adults so everybody was relaxed, everything was fine. I was reading a book and the others were talking and laughing. It was all good until my friend Maria suddenly tapped my leg and asked "can you help us find Lucas?" She looked terrified and I knew immediately that she was serious. I dropped my book and ran down the beach shouting away "LUCAS, LUCAS!". Within seconds the entire beach was on alert mode and at least four adults including Spaniards, Americans and Haitians were running up and down the beach screaming for the two-year-old in different accents. It was quite a crazy scene. There were so many kids on the beach that I thought I had found Lucas three separate times. At that moment we all feared the worst while thinking that it was just impossible. How could Lucas disappear in matter of seconds? "He was just here," we told to the lifeguard who was helping us with the search. The panic went on for about eight long minutes. Fortunately a neighbor had seen Lucas at one of the cabanas playing with some other kids that he did not even know. When we found Lucas he was missing his swim trunks but he was fine. He said "They were dirty so I went to take them off." That day we did not find the swim suit but thank God Lucas was safe. Later that night at dinner, we were laughing about the entire ordeal. We were teasing Maria about losing her son for eight long minutes. Maria is really funny, so to defend herself she said "at least he was wearing sunscreen" she continued, "I may lose my son but he won't get sun burns, I keep him covered." Maria's come-back got me thinking about sun protection. The truth is we all need some sun sense. So many of us go out in the sun without sunscreen, we just don't think about it. There are many reasons why we don't make sun protection part of our daily routine. Some of us were not raised with the habit of wearing sunscreen. When I was growing up I didn't even know the meaning of SPF. The fact is, regardless of your skin complexion you need protection from the sun's UVB and UVA rays. Don't think you cannot get sunburns just because your skin is dark, I have been a victim and believe me it's not fun. The pain followed by the peeling is not worth skipping the sunscreen. Proper skin protection is important throughout the year, especially during the warm summer months. Okay, so why is this so important? Well, think of two reasons why you should guard your skin from the harmful rays of the sun. Number one is health. According to the American Cancer society skin cancer is the most common of all cancers- they say "half of all Americans will develop skin cancer at least once and every hour one American dies of the disease." The American Cancer Society also estimates that the number of cases of melanoma, a type of skin cancer, rises by seven to eleven percent each year. While it is true that Caucasian people are more likely to develop skin cancer because of the tone of their skin, this does not mean that people of color are sheltered from the disease. Luckily, skin cancer is one of the most preventable cancers. The second reason why you should cover up with SPF is to simply look great- at any age. Protecting your skin, regardless of your age will help you look beautiful so start taking skin care seriously. The following are a few tips for developing good skin-care habits. These are suggestions that I learned from health and beauty experts. This is an important topic so you should find the time to really discover what works best for you and your skin type. • Wear sunscreen of sun protection factor (SPF) 30 or greater. Choose a sunscreen that will protect you from both UVB and UVA rays. • Apply a liberal amount of sunscreen 30 minutes before you go into the sun. Waterproof sunscreen should be applied one hour before you go into the water. • When out in the sun reapply sunscreen every two hours. • Use titanium dioxide or zinc oxide sunscreens, these protect the skin from UVA and UVB rays. They are found in many sunscreens. • Apply sunscreen even underneath lighter clothing i.e. T-shirts. Wear a wide-brimmed hat and sun glasses. • Select moisturizers and cosmetic products that contain sunscreen. • To help minimize the progression of wrinkles find a moisturizer with SPF 15 that works for you and use it every day. If you break out with acne make sure your moisturizer is oil free. • If you're in your 30s, use a moisturizer with retinol and glycolic acid. These will tone skin tone and minimize lines (according to dermatologists.) • Pop a daily multivitamin and lift weights. Beginning with the 30s (ladies) we lose a little bit of muscle mass every year unless we do something about it. • In your 40s? Skin needs a heavier moisturizer. Consider upgrading from a lotion to a cream (still with sunscreen protection.) • In your 50s, 60s and beyond? Firmness is probably the main cosmetic concern. Look into a product called Renova, $60. It's a prescription so you will need to talk to a dermatologist in this case. More importantly at this age, don't give up on fitness and good eating habits. Eat healthy and keep moving, do activities that don't put too much pressure on the knees. Just walking is great! Please note that you don't need a lot of money to protect your skin from the sun. Sunscreen products cost as low as $1 at your local pharmacy and go up to over $100 at beauty/dermatology counters. Whatever your budget, there is sunscreen out there for you so invest in your skin today. Enjoy the summer sun! And if you're out with kids keep a close eye on them, they move quickly. |