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A
NATURAL APPROACH TO SUN PROTECTION
(Article by herbalist Dave
Hawkins, MH, CNC)
Ooh! Ouch!
Ahhh! This sunburn really
hurts. How many times have you made
this statement? With summer heat coming
and our love for the sun, I thought it would be appropriate
to write about skin health and what you can do to protect
your skin. In a recent book that I have
been reading by Ralph Moss on cancer, he states that skin
cancer (melanoma) is the most common cancer overall.
There are over 800,000 cases of skin cancer
diagnosed each year in the
U.S.
Skin cancer is on the rise mainly in our older population,
but younger folks are getting it earlier.
With the depletion of the ozone and other
environmental factors, it is increasingly important to pay
attention to your skin.
The skin is
your body’s largest organ. It weighs
approximately 20 pounds and encases the body.
The skin acts as a shield against external
pollutants, injury and infectious agents.
It is a sensing organ that communicates to the brain
temperature, pressure, itching, wetness, texture and pain.
The skin is semi permeable, meaning that it absorbs
and excretes. Substances that you put
onto the skin are absorbed into the blood stream, and the
blood stream uses the skin as an organ of elimination.
This article will not deal with skin conditions like
eczema or psoriasis, but these are inflammatory conditions
that have a basis within the body and have external
symptoms. It is very important to pay
attention to the types of lotions, creams, soaps and other
external preparations that you apply to your skin because
of this factor.
Because
so many
of us have and still do suffer from sunburn, let’s address
this condition and some of the natural remedies that will
help to protect you. It is interesting
to study the debate on sunscreens.
First, it’s good to use them and then a report says that
they don’t work.
So what do you do?
Sunscreens are a good idea, but researchers think
that sunscreen may only delay sunburn because you can stay
longer in the sun before your body signals that is has had
enough.
Another issue with sunscreen is
that it inhibits Vitamin D production which helps to
protect your skin against certain cancers.
Of course, now we find sunscreens with Vitamin D and
other nutrients to help protect us so it is a good idea,
especially for sensitive skin types, elderly and young
children, to use them.
Let’s take a
look at some of the topical nutrients for the skin that you
might find in sunscreen lotions:
-
Vitamin C:
This antioxidant has shown in studies with
animals to reduce redness and sunburned cells.
It is used in tissue repair when our skin is
burned.
-
Vitamin E:
A powerful antioxidant which enhances skin
immunity and aids the healing process if burned.
-
Lycopene:
The red bioflavonoid in tomatoes has shown to
benefit skin protection by increasing resistance to UV
radiation.
-
Selenium:
Helps prevent burning and helps to heal skin
that has been burned.
-
Zinc Oxide:
This has been used for a long time to protect
the skin. It helps with skin growth
and repair and helps decrease the number of cells
damaged by UV rays.
There are many
plants that can be used internally and externally when it
comes to sun protection. Let’s look at
some of these in depth. We begin with
green tea. Green tea has been touted as
an anti-cancer herb. It is a powerful
antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent.
Topical use has shown a 94 percent inhibition rate
of skin cancer in animals in a study done by
Rutgers
University.
Drinking the tea also has been effective in diminishing the
negative effects of too much sun.
However, one would have to drink up to two quarts per day
to be useful.
Witch hazel,
which is a renowned herb used as a vulnerary (wound healer)
and anti-inflammatory, has shown that it works against
sunburn due to its astringent and antioxidant qualities.
You may see this as an active ingredient in
sunscreen.
Milk thistle
applied topically has shown in animal research with mice to
diminish the number and size of tumors exposed to UV
radiation.
Two plants
mentioned for sunburn in Dr. James Duke’s book, The
Green Pharmacy, are marigold (calendula) and plantain.
These are age old remedies for skin inflammation and
tissue healing. They contain allantoin,
which is used in many skin creams. The
herbs comfrey and aloe also contain allantoin and are also
used in lotions.
Let’s look at
our age old friend aloe vera. Many of
us call this the burn plant; and I know that when I have
had too much sun, this has always come to my rescue.
We keep a tube of 99 percent aloe vera gel in the
refrigerator in the summer just for this purpose.
It is very cooling to burned skin and can be applied
many times. Aloe vera helps to reduce
pain, kill bacteria and promotes the healing of skin.
We have found it good for bug bites and poison ivy
by relieving the itching.
When it comes
to having fun in the sun, it only takes a few minutes to
make sure you are protected.
Use common
sense as to how long you expose yourself.
Cover up when you begin to feel your skin tingle.
You will have many more days to work on your tan.
The sun is our friend and is vital for our bodies;
let us not make it our enemy.
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