The importance of sun protection

Many friends may think that the purpose of sun protection is to prevent us from becoming so dark and to keep themselves white, so sun protection is not that important. This view is completely wrong, because the purpose of sun protection is not just to prevent tanning. The purpose of sun protection is to protect our skin and our body. The importance of sun protection is very great.

If we do not pay attention to sun protection, not only will our skin darken, but we may also suffer from sunburn and sun spots, and may even cause skin erosion and burning pain. So we still need to pay attention to sun protection.

When the skin is overexposed to ultraviolet rays, it will damage epidermal cells, activate tyrosinase, accelerate pigment synthesis, destroy the skin's moisturizing function, make the skin dry, damage the elastic fibers in the dermis, and cause fine lines. Under strong radiation, it can also cause skin inflammation and burns. In abnormal cases, it may turn into pigmented skin cancer, etc. So sun protection is not just to prevent darkening, sun protection is very important.

Here are some things that show how terrible sunscreen is, so that everyone can further understand the importance of sunscreen:

1. Sunburn

Sunburn is an acute local inflammatory reaction caused by the skin's poor tolerance to sunlight and prolonged exposure to strong sunlight. The light that causes this disease is medium-wave ultraviolet light (wavelength 290-320nm). It mainly occurs in summer, is more common in people working outdoors and tourists, and is more likely to occur in people with fair skin.

The specific manifestations are:

(1) The disease occurs after sun exposure;

(2) The basic damage is the appearance of large patches of erythema with clear boundaries on the sun-exposed areas. In severe cases, blisters and large cells may occur;

(3) Burning or stinging pain;

(4) It often occurs on exposed parts of the body, such as the face, neck, shoulders, and limbs.

2. Sunburn

Sunburn is an acute damaging response of the skin to intense sunlight exposure. Erythema, edema, and even blisters occur in exposed areas, often in late spring and early summer before the skin becomes tanned.

After sunburn, erythema occurs quickly after exposure to strong sunlight, and individual reactions vary greatly. Some people with light skin will develop scarlet spots on the exposed parts within a few hours. The spots have clear boundaries and edema, and blisters may form. The blister walls are tense and contain a yellowish serous fluid. However, in some people with dark skin, the reaction sometimes does not appear until the next exposure. Generally, there is a local heat or burning sensation first, followed by skin pulling and burning pain. In severe cases, people often cannot sleep well, and even clothes and sheets that come into contact with them are unbearable. In mild cases, the erythema gradually subsides within 1-2 days, leaving superficial desquamation and pigmentation. Diffuse edema accompanied by taut swelling of the skin often lasts for several days, followed by bran-like desquamation. In severe cases, there are also red and swollen eyelids, conjunctival congestion, chills, fever, nausea and tachycardia, and even systemic symptoms such as heat stroke and shock. It takes about a week to recover. In addition, acute sunburn can also serve as a triggering factor, prompting the occurrence, recurrence and aggravation of diseases such as herpes simplex, lupus erythematosus, and porphyria cutanea tarda.

Complications: Erythema, edema, and blisters accompanied by burning pain after intense sunlight exposure. After the acute phase, the skin gradually develops pigmentation.

3. Severe sunburn causes skin erosion and burning pain

Last summer, white-collar worker Ms. Wang went on vacation to the beach with her friends. After spending a day in the sun at the beach, Ms. Wang's face developed redness, swelling, heat and pain that evening, and the skin began to peel off the next day. In order not to affect her "beauty" at work, Ms. Wang followed the method of "using fresh lemon and cucumber slices on the face to whiten the skin" taught in some beauty magazines. She went to the supermarket overnight to buy lemons and cucumbers and applied them all over her face. When Ms. Wang got up the next morning, she looked in the mirror and was shocked: the skin that had been applied with lemon and cucumber not only did not improve, but it became even more red and swollen, and small blisters appeared, which were extremely painful when touched lightly.

According to dermatologists, the department receives many patients suffering from sunburn every summer, many of whom are like Ms. Wang, whose condition is made worse by the abuse of "skin care products". Director Lu said that the human body has a tolerance to sunlight. When exposed to excessive ultraviolet rays, the stratum corneum cells of the skin will become necrotic, releasing inflammatory mediators, causing the body's dermal blood vessels to dilate and tissue edema, resulting in inflammatory symptoms such as redness, swelling, and fever of the skin after sunburn. At this time, if you use lemon and cucumber like Miss Wang,

Applying substances with a pH value that is too acidic or too alkaline on the face will further irritate the already injured skin and aggravate the inflammation.

Generally, the skin will show inflammation symptoms 2-6 hours after excessive exposure to sunlight. These symptoms will reach a peak within 24 hours. Mild symptoms include skin edema, itching, erythema, and blisters. Severe symptoms include skin erosion, burning pain, and even fever. Mild sunburn symptoms usually heal within 1-2 days, while more severe symptoms may take about a week.

Above we introduced what sun protection is. We often have a misunderstanding about sun protection, that is, we think that the purpose of sun protection is to prevent tanning. In fact, the effect of sun protection is very large. Sun protection can not only protect our skin but also protect our body. The above article introduces the importance of sun protection in detail.