Sci Tech
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Page 3 • Wednesday, March 10, 2004
It’s gettin’ hot in here
Spring break, days at the beach and sunburns are on tap for students next week
By David Barry
THE BATTALION
As spring break approaches, many students are taking advantage
i n M)fthe recent warm weather to soak up a few rays between classes.
3thers are visiting tanning parlors.
“This is the busiest time of year,” said Allison Gow, an employ-
ofTotal Tan Salon in College Station.
But dermatologists have a few words of caution for sun-seeking
fpilsiudents-don’t get burned.
When sunlight damages cells near the skin, they switch into
repair mode, expanding nearby blood vessels to speed the flow of
t ^eded nutrients. The increased blood flow causes the red eol
ation associated with sunburns, said Ron Davis, a clinical profes-
r of dennatology at the University of Texas Southwestern
ledical School.
But the most serious damage from sunburn is not immediately
risible. Sun-damaged skin cells may take years to blossom into
melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. In a 1999 issue of The
New England Journal of Medicine, a group of doctors reported that
the risk of melanoma is associated specifically with exposures that
Jinduce sunburn.”
The danger of sunburn is greatest for fair-skinned people who
^ spend most of winter indoors, Davis said. Fair skin is especial
ly unguarded against a daylong onslaught of ultraviolet (UV)
I radiation at the beach because it lacks melanin, pigment that cre
ates dark-colored skin, absorbs sunlight and serves as a natural
sunscreen.
Tanning increases the amount of protective melanin in the
in, reducing the risk of severe sunburn, but that doesn’t mean
that students should rush to the tanning parlor to get a preemp
tive tan. Dermatologists are fond of saying, “there is no such
as a safe tan,” and there is plenty of evidence to back them
up.A 2002 report in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute
suggested that tanning bed users are twice as likely to develop
non-melanoma types of skin cancer, the same types of skin
cancer commonly found in farmers and other exposed outdoor
workers.
The overall incidence of skin cancer is rising as people who
spend more time doing outdoor activities visit tanning salons. The
American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) estimated that one in
live Americans will develop skin cancer in his lifetime. The good
news is that fatalities from skin cancer have decreased as doctors
andpatients have become more vigilant in spotting abnormal skin
growths.
“Early recognition is big,” Davis said.
UV damage to skin also has aesthetic consequences. The sun’s
rays can cause irregular pigmentation on the face and other parts of
the skin, commonly in women who take birth control pills with the
hormone estrogen, Davis said.
Moreover, some UV rays can penetrate the second layer of skin,
which contains the tissue responsible for the skin’s elasticity, Davis
said. To see this elasticity at work, pull up the skin on the back of
your hand and watch it snap back into place. As your skin ages, it
will take longer to return to its original shape, and sagging and wrin
kles will appear. UV damage from tanning or burning accelerates
the aging process of elastic tissue.
Davis said it is important to head off damaging sunlight at the
pass with a few simple preventive measures.
Sunscreen technology is constantly improving, although
Davis cautioned that sunscreens still don’t provide complete pro
tection. Most sunscreens on store shelves now claim to be “broad
spectrum,” meaning they contain chemicals that absorb both
UVA and UVB, the two types of UV radiation that reach the
earth's surface.
For those who complain about sunscreen’s greasy feel, new
alcohol-based brands rub on and dry out quickly. Davis said he
advises purchasing broad-spectrum sunscreens rated at a skin pro
tection factor (SPF) of 30. Skin protected with properly applied
SPF 30 sunscreen will take 30 times longer to bum than unprotect
ed skin.
Even the best sunscreens are only as good as the person applying
them. Full coverage of the average-sized person requires an ounce
of sunscreen, according to the AAD, roughly equivalent to what you
could fit into a shot glass. Sunscreens should be applied when the
skin is cool and dry', Davis said, because sweat and water will carry
away its active ingredients.
Like sunscreen, clothing is no guarantee of skin protection.
According to the Harvard School of
Medicine, a typical white
T-shirt has an SPF of only five - even less when it is wet. Davis said
a simple laundry additive such as SunGuard adds an SPF of 30 to
most clothing and lasts about 20 washes. He added that UV filtering
sunglasses are essential, no matter what you are wearing.
The safest strategy is to limit the amount of time spent in the sun,
especially in the middle of the day when the sun’s rays are fiercest.
Most UV radiation will penetrate cloud cover, so overcast days are
no guarantee of safety.
Inevitably, a few spring break revelers will suffer a severe sun
burn - the kind of sunburn that makes a person shriek with pain if a
friend so much as pretends to pat them on the back. Anti-inflam
matory drugs such as aspirin and ibuprofen can soothe the pain of
sunburn, Davis said, but the most immediate relief may come from
the application of a refrigerated aloe-containing lotion.
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Tunisia & Spain
Study Abroad
May 18 - June 25,2004
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Study at Chott Mariem University founded by Aggies in 1960.
On a camel discover how and why the Sahara moves.
Along the Meditenanean understand agricultural and historical
relationships between Southern Spain and Northern Africa.
In a Bedouin tent leam about the ancient Berber culture and what
they gave to modem ranchers in Texas.
In Europe’s old and ban en breadbasket see the delivery of water by
Roman aqueducts and modem dams.
Eat a brie, drink camels milk yogurt with honey, and watch olives,
dates, Barb horses, and fat-tailed sheep grow.
Try your Spanish and Arabic in souks, mercados, and hammems.
Leam from accompanying faculty from Texas A&M and Institut
National Agronomique de Tunisie; 6 hours of Texas A&M credits.
Pay $2995.00 for airfare, in country travel, food and lodging.
Excludes Texas A&M tuition.
For More Information Contact:
Rhonda D’Agostino
Cathryn Clement
Tate Rosenbusch
The International Office of the
Agriculture Program
Rm 12 Administration Bldg.
979-845-4164
‘Terms and conditions apply. See website for details.