Malaysia is the tropical country where it experiences all year summer
without any other seasons. I am fortunate enough to live in such a country as I
am the kind of person who can’t easily stand cold.
When I was in Korea during the summer season, I have experienced various
weather changes. During the first week I was there (mid July), the weather was
rainy and gloomy. But after a few weeks later, it turned to extremely hot and
dry. It is especially unbearable for many who can’t stand burning hotness of
the sun. What more during the time when we went for fieldtrip to Busan Beach
and Daegu Downtown, the weather was just so unfriendly hot!
But, hey! For Koreans and many other 4 seasoned countries, summer is the
season for vacations, outdoor recreation, travelling and sports! Generally,
most people beat the heat by wearing thin layer of clothes, especially in the
beaches area where you could see lots of lads with bikini and gentlemen with
just underwear, and what more they are sun-basking. But do they realize the
danger of overexposure to the ultraviolet radiation from the sun which may
cause skin burn and in serious case, skin cancer?
Well, many, especially those Koreans, Westerners or most people with fair
skin would say they want to get their skin turn brown as they tan. Ideally,
yes, it can. But what if we are not careful? It will burn and turn red!
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| Too many different sunscreen products are on sale in market, one has to choose wisely. |
Go back to the science of dermatology before we delve further. Melanin is
the dark pigment in our epidermis that protect the skin against the sun’s ray.
Sunburn occurs when the length of sun exposure outpaces the absorptive ability
of the melanin, which depends of the amount of melanin present in the skin.
So you may ask, how do we actually know the amount of melanin present in
our skin?
Well, it all boils down to our nature of skin. Individuals with very
white skin and brighter hair colour(blonde and redheads) often have low
concentration of melanin and thus much more susceptible to sunburns. For people
with darker skin, high concentration of melanin often avoid the skin from getting
sunburn easily. That is why I don’t have
much problem with sunburn, but still I just couldn’t stand with the hotness, it
just getting my skin to become darker and darker.
Besides sunburn problem, individual exposed to prolong exposure to
sunlight, will develop freckles (or ephelides). Freckles are small spot on the
skin which are usually yellow or brown. They are often seen on the face but may
occur on other part of body that has been exposed to sunlight.
One may wonder how do these freckles being produced?
They are actually produced by the action of UV radiation that triggers
the increase of melanin in the pigment cells. Older children and younger adult tend
to have more distinct freckles compared with older adults as facial skins where
freckles are most noticeable tend to darken and become coarser with age.
To avoid sunburn, many would opt for sunscreen cream. Most make it a
habit to apply sun cream before they leave the house and repeat applications
after swimming or spending a long time outside. The same goes for hiking on
mountains as the UV radiation increases with higher altitudes. However, they
should also realize that the brighter the hair colour and the skin, the higher
the sun protection factor (SPF) sunscreen they should use. Generally, sunscreen
with SPF above 15 is always ideally recommended.
According to Dr Raimund Royer (the medical director of Jaseng Oriental
Medicine’s International Clinic), the gel-like substance in the leaves of aloe
vera plant might be applied directly on the burned skin. An active compound in
the aloe, glycoprotein alleviates the pain and inflammation present in sunburn,
where its polysaccharides boost skin repair and growth. Frequently used, aloe
vera might not only alleviate sunburn, but it may also help freckles to slowly
fade away. So, one may consider the use of aloe vera gel in treating sunburn.
However, prevention is still better than cure. The best treatment for
sunburn is still prevention. So, try to avoid prolonged exposure to sun,
especially between 10am to 4pm when the UV radiation is the strongest. Also,
make it a habit to apply sunscreen before you leave the house for any outdoor
activities during the hot days!
