No question: The sun is important for our health! However, too much sun can age us. Who wants that? We want to sunbathe and reap the healthy benefits!
When sunbathing we produce vitamin D. Deficiency of this vitamin increases the risk of infections and diseases such as diabetes, osteoporosis, depression, and Alzheimer’s disease. The downside is that the UV-A and UV-B rays of the sun penetrate deep into our skin. Sunburn causes a great deal of damage to the cells and the risk of skin cancer increases.
The sun our friend and enemy?
The length of time that we should expose ourselves to UV light without protection depends above all on our skin type and the associated self-protection time. With red hair, light skin, and freckles, for example, we should not stay in the sun for more than 10 minutes. If, on the other hand, we have light to dark brown skin, dark hair and eyes, we only need skin protection after 30 minutes. This helps us meet our daily vitamin D requirements.
Use the right cream!
Sun screen protects us from dangerous UV rays when sunbathing after the skin’s own protection has expired. With sun protection factor 30, we simply have to multiply our own protection time by 30. At 10 minutes this results in a maximum sunbathing time of 300 minutes. We should always re-apply every 2 hours and after swimming.
Antioxidants such as vitamins C and E or beta-carotenes and zinc serve to support the skin from the inside.
Sun protection from within!
We reduce the “UV-stress” of the skin best with the supply of antioxidants. Our “helpers” are vitamin C and vitamin E, which protect the cells from oxidative stress, as well as the plant dyes beta-carotene and lycopene. Sun worshippers should enjoy a particularly high antioxidant-rich diet. In summer you can enjoy apricots, tomatoes, olive oil, red peppers, carrots, and peaches as well as juicy southern fruits. A cup of green tea helps against “UV-stress”.
Zinc, with its known effect in the cell structure of the skin, should be emphasized. Good zinc sources are animal products such as meat, fish, eggs, dairy products and oat flakes, pulses, and nuts.
Let’s start before sunbathing!
In summary: the best way to prepare for the time in the sun is to replenish our nutrient stores at an early stage. Sufficient hydration, investment in good skin creams or skin screen, a gentle tanning in the tanning bed, and the use of antioxidants and zinc round off our “sun preparation kit”!
