The enchantment with having a "good tan" and looking "healthy" has led many people, including teenagers, to avoid using sunscreen. How and when sun damage occurs to children’s skin may surprise you. Many parents know that in the United States alone more than 1 million skin cancers are diagnosed in adults each year, resulting from damage to the skin during childhood. Many of these cancers are deadly melanomas. Over the last thirty years, the frequency of melanoma has more than doubled, even though sunscreen use has increased. About 80 percent of our total lifetime sun exposure happens during childhood. But there are two key ages to pay extra attention. Ultraviolet (UV) rays reflect off water, sand, and snow. UV rays also reach below water's surface. Sunburns in children increased risk of melanoma. The sun's rays are generally strongest from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you outdoors, be sure their skin is protected.

Some easy steps for made your skin softer. Stick to warm (not hot) showers, and apply lotion while skin is still damp from the shower or bath. Green tea really cleans skin and soften. Sensitive skin is susceptible to skin irritations, redness, itching or rashes. Use a moisturizer that doesn't contain potential allergens, such as fragrances or dyes, and is specifically designed for sensitive skin. Proper exfoliation also speeds up cell-turnover rate, meaning you'll bring a radiant and glowing complexion to the surface more quickly. Regular use of a body scrub, which sloughs dead cells from the skin's surface, can help rub out the problem within a couple of months. Rough, bumpy skin on the backs of your upper arms, butt, and thighs is the hallmark of this very common--and completely harmless--condition.

Use Sunscreen Every Day

Apply sunscreen every day on skin that is not protected by clothing or a hat. Choose a sunscreen with a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 15 or higher. And remember to reapply after swimming, sweating, or toweling dry.

Protect children younger than 6 months of age with clothing and keep them in the shade.

Description of Preventive Measures

Preventive measures for limiting sun exposure include sun avoidance (especially during midday), use of protective clothing and hats, and application of sunscreens. Protective clothing can include pants, hats, long-sleeved shirts, and newer sun-resistant fabrics. Physical sunscreens (e.g., zinc oxide) are opaque, often greasy formulations that reflect both UVA and UVB. Chemical sunscreens are non-opaque and absorb UVA, UVB, or both. Sunscreens are classified according to Sun Protection Factor (SPF), an index of protection against skin erythema. SPF ranges from 1-45 or above and quantifies UVB protection. (8) A sunscreen with SPF 15 filters 92% of the UVB. SPF is determined indoors using a light spectrum meant to mimic noontime sun; when tested outdoors, SPF may over-estimate sun protection by a factor of two, especially when the sun is close to the horizon owing to a changed ratio of UVA to UVB. (9) There is currently no uniform measure for UVA absorption. The UV index, a public health education tool reported by meteorologists in 58 U.S. cities, offers a daily report of UV light levels on a scale from 1-10+ (minimal to very high exposure).

Can tomatoes protect your skin?

There is a magical component in tomatoes that research is beginning to show could protect our skin from UV damage from sunburn. It’s called lycopene and it is a very effective antioxidant.

About 85% of lycopene in the western diet is obtained only from tomatoes and the best place to find it is in tomato paste.

Our test was to establish whether eating tomato paste could help protect the skin from UV damage and UV-induced reddening. We took 23 women who were used to burning merely at the sight of the sun and asked half of them to eat 55g of tomato paste every day for 12 weeks (giving them 16mg of lycopene).