February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
? People with fair skin, freckles, red/blond hair and light colored eyes, (Celts in other words) are by far the most susceptible to developing skin cancer. However, to put into perspective just how powerful those UV rays are, 40-50 percent of African Americans who live past 65 years of age will have skin cancer at least once.
? Skin cancers are the commonest cancers in Ireland, accounting for 26 percent of female cancers and 22.4 percent of male cancers. (European Institute of Women’s Health)
? Approximately 6,000-7,000 new cases of skin cancer occur every year in Ireland.
? One bad sunburn doubles your chances of developing skin cancer.
? More than one million cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed in the United States this year and approximately 9,800 people will die from the disease.
Still want to bake on a beach?
Irish people are not designed for the sun, as comic Ardal O’Hanlon says, while the ancient Greeks were busy inventing sun dials the Irish were still looking up at the sky waiting to catch a glimpse of the sun and asking each other, “Is it that fluffy gray thing?”
Thankfully, there are alternatives to scorching yourself to a crisp and I’m not talking about sun beds, which are allegedly as damaging to the skin as the real thing. Apart from anything else that orange tango-tan is just not classy. Who would you rather look like, Nicole Kidman or Donatella Versace? There was a time when self-tanners would leave you looking a bit Jaffa-esque but that day is, thankfully, long gone. Instead of risking your future health instead try one of the following:
? L’Oreal has a variety of products for the sun-shy. The new Sublime Bronze range includes a regular self-tanner, a tinted lotion and a quick-dry gel