Be sure to lather up with that sunscreen....

[LastResort]

NOT!

I always had my suspicions about the stuff and only ever use it on my nose and face when I'm planning on spending the day on the water. Anyways a friend of mine spoke of certain ingredients in sunscreen causing cancer a few weeks ago and I finally had a chance to do some reading. Yup its true checked the ingredients on two of the bottles I had at home and in the garbage they go. Heres a couple links if anyone cares to do some reading themselves:

http://www.healthhype.com/harmful-sunscreen-ingredients.html

http://www.naturalnews.com/001264.html

http://www.skinbiology.com/toxicsunscreens.html

[Son-of-Liberty]

I've been hearing more about this myself lately but hadn't bothered to look it up yet. Thanks for the intel.

It is just common sense that rubbing dozens of chemicals on the skin all the time is not good for you.

[madfranks]

It's true, if you gave someone a bottle of chemicals and told them to rub it deep into the pores of your skin all over your body, they probably wouldn't do it, but call it sunscreen and tell them it prevents sunburns and they'll do it!

For the record, I've read that eating blueberries will help your body naturally protect itself from sunburns, but the one time I tried it, I ate lots of blueberries a week before a full day outside and I got sunburned really bad!

[Dogman]

What ever happened to the old and true way? Build up a tan slowly the old school way. Oh , I forgot, not enough time to do it. Or do not want a tan that in time can make your skin wrinkle up more than a prune and gives you the sun weathered, leather skin look!

[LastResort]

What ever happened to the old and true way? Build up a tan slowly the old school way. Oh , I forgot, not enough time to do it. Or do not want a tan that in time can make your skin wrinkle up more than a prune and gives you the sun weathered, leather skin look!

Good point I got a little burnt yesterday being on the water but the only bad areas are where I was still white as a ghost.

[MNeagle]

Kids' Sunscreen Rules Revised in Md.

Worried that applying sunscreen would lead to inappropriate touching, Maryland health officials put in place new rules that would have placed strict limits on summer camps distributing sunscreen to campers.

The rules would have also prohibited campers from helping each other apply the lotion, the Washington Post reported (http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/md-to-require-parental-permission-before-kids-can-use-sunscreen/2011/06/30/AGN1AitH_story.html).
But critics worried that the sunscreen policy would expose children to another danger: skin cancer.

Clifford C. Mitchell, assistant health director for environmental health and food protection with the state of Maryland, acknowledged to the Post that the message may not have been clear.

From the Post:

“We regret the confusion caused,” Mitchell said Friday night in an interview.

The rules were aimed at protecting children from inappropriate touching at camp, but they came as the federal government campaigns for parents to get more serious about protecting children against damage to skin the sun’s rays can inflict.

On Friday evening, those guidelines were revised. The new policy will require parents to give permission to summer camps if they want their child to be using sunscreen. However, they dropped the rules over putting the lotion on and touching.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/health/DC-Kids-Sunscreen-Rules-a-Touchy-Subject-in-Md-124909839.html?rr=td

[hoarder]

The old school way was to not get a tan. Suntans were made fashionable by the usual suspects as a social engineering stunt. Before that, not having a tan was never looked upon as unattractive.

[Dogman]

Agree

If you swam you could not help it, and always tried to do it slowly because the burn hurt and looking like a molting lizard later was not fun. If working out doors it was an open choice , shirt on or off. My grandfather worked outdoors all of his life and always wore a long sleeve shirt outside. His face , neck and hands had wrinkle that had wrinkles. but where the sun did not touch , smooth skin.

[BrewTech]

Without the sun, no one would be here. It's energy promotes health. No wonder the government wants to limit people's exposure to it.

[Serpo]

Sun Protection

One of the most interesting facts about people who live in tropical
climates like the Philippines, where the people are constantly exposed
to the rays of the sun year round, is that skin cancer is almost
unheard of in these places. Here in the US we are constantly warned
about the dangers of exposure to the sun, and yet the sun helps our
bodies produce much needed nutrients for our skin, such as Vitamin D,
which has been shown to prevent cancer.2

Once again we see that coconut oil is probably one of the main reasons
people in tropical climates can spend so much time in the sun and not
suffer from skin cancer. Coconut oil has wonderful antioxidant
properties that protect the skin from free radical damage. Also, when
coconut oil is consumed and used topically on our skin, it helps our
bodies absorb other nutrients more effectively as well, such as
Vitamin E, another powerful antioxidant nutrient that protects the skin.

I am fair skinned but used VCO as a sunscreen in Florida last summer.
My family thought I was crazy. I did not burn although everyone else
did (with their toxic sunscreen). One day, I did get a little too much
sun, and was a little red, but I put the VCO on it and it was gone by
the next day. So try it, and see, just be sensible about the sun,
nothing can protect you if you stand in the hot sun for a very long
time. Rachel (Coconut Diet Forums)

I just got back from my 7-day trip to Jamaica. I used VCO exclusively
as my sunscreen. I had no burns and my tan is even and golden. I am
somewhat fair-skinned. Most of my time was spent in the shade, but I
spent a good amount of time floating around on the water each day. My
husband is even fairer and he did get pink slightly on his shoulders,
at which time he applied both sunscreen and VCO to that area (VCO
everywhere else). His tan is also pretty dark. People kept commenting
on what nice color we were getting, ha ha. Marnie (Coconut Diet Forums)

It should be noted that when reports like this are made in our
discussion group, invariably some will try using Virgin Coconut Oil
exclusively as a sunscreen and go out and get burned! Some have even
reported that sometimes the coconut oil works wonderfully as a
sunscreen, while at other times they seem to get burned. It seems that
the oils you put into your body are just as important as what you onto
your body in regards to sun protection. We have found that if one eats
foods loaded with polyunsaturated oils, generally they will burn more
in the sun. It is theorized that when one eats foods cooked in
polyunsaturated vegetable oils, often with trans fatty acids, that one
is putting oxidized lipids into their skin tissue that are causing
free radical damage, and more susceptible to burning in the sun. So if
you just got done eating some french fries from a fast food
restaurant, you may be more susceptible to sun burn!


http://www.indiadivine.org/audarya/ayurveda-health-wellbeing/1060583-using-coconut-oil-sunscreen.html
(http://coconutdiet.com/skin_health.htm)

[BrewTech]

Fuck sunscreen. If it weren't for the sun, we wouldn't be here.

That said, if you're in the desert or on the beach, smart use of protective clothing or physical sunblocks may be in your best interest.