The Beauty and the Cancer
Can beauty be the cause of death? It can when you tan too much. This is the part about tanning that I don't understand. Why tan and put yourself at risk for Melanoma skin cancer? Yes, in this day and age we all know that we should use sunblock but sunblock can only protect you from so much.
I use a lot of sunblock and apply it religiously. However, I never really stopped to compare labels when I go to buy it. It turns out that all sunblocks block out UVB rays and only some sunblocks block out UVA rays. Thankfully, the sunblock that I have been using all these years does both. However, no sunblock can fully protect you from Melanoma.
What is melanoma? Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that forms on the epidermis. You can get melanoma from too much exposure to UV rays. This includes the sun, tanning beds and even tanning lamps. The American Cancer Society says that melanoma causes the most skin cancer deaths. The only way that melanoma skin cancer can be prevented is through staying out of the sun especially during peak hours in order not to absorb strong UV rays, staying away from UV rays – tanning beds and tanning lamps and frequent application of sunblock. Knowing this, why would tanners still want to tan?
Tanning was not the trend in the west one hundred years ago. Before the tanning craze pale white skin was considered to be beautiful. Women also took deadly measure to make themselves as white as paper. During the Victorian Era women rubbed arsenic on to their skin to lighten their complexion. Arsenic is a poisonous metalloid. Women would die of too much exposure to it. The funny thing is arsenic trioxide is used to treat cancer. Who would have thought?
