New FDA Guidelines are forthcoming that will help consumers spot sunscreen effectiveness.  Right now, labels are misguided, leaving you to choose lotions that may be ineffective.  With skin cancer on the rise, it pays to know how to protect yourself.

CONFUSED ABOUT whether or not to use sunscreen, or which one works?  The FDA has announced new mandates that reflect more than three decades of study.  By the summer of 2010, changes to sunscreen labels will be enforced.

These lotions will have to indicate if they protect against UVA and UVB radiation; currently, the label only needs to refer to UVB.  If both UVA and UVB protection is not offered by 2010, the manufacturer cannot assert that their lotion protects against skin cancer or early skin aging.

What’s more, the new regulations will mandate that sunscreen lotions will no longer be able to advertise a SPF – sun protection factor – greater than 50.

Judy Woodruff of the PBS Newshour (the best news show on TV in my humble opinion), recently interviewed Dr. Ali Hendi, a dermatologist with The Skin Cancer Foundation.

Here’s some bottom line assertions that Dr. Hendi made in the interview:

- With the new guidelines, a product cannot label itself as being waterproof or a sunblock. Those do not exist. There’s no ingredient that is a total sunblock. And there’s no product that is waterproof.

- When outdoors, apply sunscreen every two hours. If swimming or sweating, apply sunscreen after the activity is finished.

- UVB rays do not penetrate deeply; they can be blocked by the glass in your car, for example. UVA rays penetrate deeply and are known to cause skin cancer. It’s important to have protection from both UVA and UVB.

-  Skin cancer and skin damage from sun exposure is happening to more young people today than in the past.  Oftentimes, the damage is from exposure a decade earlier. Young women are developing skin cancer in greater numbers than men which is thought to be due to their greater use of tanning beds that use U.V. radiation, a known carcinogen.

If you’re a sun lover, or want to know more about this topic, listen to the Judy Woodruff Interview or go to the PBS Newshour and watch the interview here.

Related posts:

1. Japan’s Radiation Fallout – Protect Yourself!
2. Do Flu (H1N1) Vaccines Work? Two Studied Opinions

Completely amazing!! You need to see how new skin can, in effect, be sprayed on with a spray gun to save the lives of burn victims.

MAKING SCIENCE fiction real, Dr. Jörg C. Gerlach has developed a spray gun, which uses a patient’s own cells to help regenerate burn victims’ skin in just days!

The whole spray gun process only takes about an hour! Revolutionary!

The video below shows a miraculous recovery, where extensive second degree burns are cured in just four days. The usual methods, like skin grafts, take weeks to heal burns.

I’m truly excited about the advances in molecular cell biology.  Could the day be near at hand when surgery is no longer needed to graft skin or replace failing organs?  Hope so.

Related posts:

1. Watch: Stem Cell Research — A Father’s Fight
2. My Sister Loses One Pound/Day on hCG — Watch
3. Does Hemp Oil Cure Cancer (and other things)? Watch

Am on a myth roll… this one, “10 winter health myths”.  After all, it is winter, you want to be healthy, so check it out.

I JUST can’t help myself.  Just read another list of health myths, and am compelled to list them, but this time, I’ll leave it to you to click over to the original article rather than summarize them (along with my two cents), as I did yesterday’s post, 12 Myths About Cholesterol.

This one is from Yahoo! Health and it’s called, 10 Winter Health Myths Exposed, by Sara Jio.  Go to her article and read the specifics about why these commonly held beliefs are bunk, or continue on here to scan the list.

Here they are, 10 Winter Health Myths:

1. You can catch a cold by being out in the elements too long. (It isn’t the cold, it’s the bacteria and viruses.)
2. More people are depressed during the winter months. (Perhaps a bit more stress, but not depression.)
3. Chicken soup helping a cold is an “old wives tale”. (Could help the immune system and assist in zapping the cold.)
4. Wear a hat cause you lose must of your heat via the head. (Nope, first be concerned with your torso – wear a warm jacket.)
5. Shouldn’t exercise in the cold. (Nope, just warm up first.)
6. We need more sleep in the winter. (Not a need, but perhaps a compulsion.)
7. Don’t need sunscreen in the winter. (Yes you do… the Sun and UV rays are still present.)
8. Frostbite is hard to get. (No, can happen in just 30 minutes.)
9. Dry skin is harmless and a winter issue. (Maybe not, as it can induce infection.)
10. Can’t get allergies during the winter. (Depends – pollen allergy suffers are safe, but indoor allergies get worse.)

Well, I guess I did include a summary (actually, a conclusion) for each of these 10 winter health myths, but for more insight and a better understanding, go read Sara Jio’s article.

Related posts:

1. Five Diet and Exercise Myths that Need to Die
2. 12 Myths About Cholesterol
3. Dr. Weil and Kevin Rose Talk Health (Video)

10 ways to soothe your sunburn

IF YOU had the kind of Independence Day that I did, you had plenty of time in the sun.  My Croatian skin can take it, but those with less brown pigment melanin might have ended the day with some sunburn.

If so, take a look at Barbara Brody’s 10 Ways to Soothe Sunburn, which I summarize thus:

1. Slop on aloe. It’s soothing and healing. I get it from the source — a plant in my house.
2. Apply milk for 20 minutes.
3. Dissolve baking soda with water and apply generously.
4. Vinegar may help reduce pain.
5. The herbs comfrey and calendula promote tissue healing and have anti-inflammatory properties.
6. Drink pure water.
7. Raw honey can reduce inflammation.
8. Lock in moisture with Burt’s Bees Aloe & Linden After Sun Soother or Bach Rescue Cream.
9. Get more vitamins.  (Go to the article for specifics.)
10. Eat fish or take omega-3 fatty acids to reduce inflammation.

So, there’s 10 ways to go… hope your skin cools down!

Related posts:

1. Skin Is More Than Skin Deep

Supplements and lotions reviewed here: Vitamin D3, MSM Lotion, Aloe.

THE HEALTH of your skin reflects your overall health, for truly there’s little about it that’s only skin-deep. It follows that if you lather various topical solutions on your skin to make it look better — unless they have nutrients designed to be transdermally absorbed — the outcome will be unsatisfactory.

So, want better looking skin?

Well, then you better address the whole body-package.  That said, it makes sense to use moisturizers that keep skin cells plump and, of course, sun protection so you neither approximate the appearance of a lizard, or become an artifact in a cancer ward.

Please go read my post called Detoxifying Your Way to Nirvana.  Few things you can do to your insides have such a dramatic effect to your outside (skin) as cleansing.

While you’re digesting that post, you can consider two essential fatty acid products great for the skin, among many: Ultra EPA and Evening Primrose Oil.

You may also wish to take WebMD’s Personal Skin Evaluator.  I just did and wonder if the set of suggestions the “evaluator” produced for me based on my personal input is pretty much the same for everyone.  That said, good suggestions about skin care are offered.

Here’s the stuff I use:

Vitamin D3 Called the “sunshine vitamin” because your body will synthesize it in sunlight. This has been a check-in-the-box vitamin until recently.  Now, scientist are discovering that many of us are Vitamin D deficient, particularly African-Americans and Hispanics living in North America (who evolved in parts of the world with more sunlight).  What’s more, there’s a link between Vitamin D deficiency and cancer. Good insurance, I’d say!

Rich’s MSM Lotion Made with MSM, various essential fatty acids and aloe vera, this well-priced lotion rapidly penetrates your skin and does a good job of hydrating it.  MSM is great for the skin, and I ingest it in capsule or powder form as well.

Aloe Vera Gel Lotion I use the generic stuff distributed by Trader Joe’s which is only offered in-store, but my guess is that as long as the label says something like “99% pure” and “organic”, the product should be fine.  Here I link to Jason Naturals Aloe Vera because of the reputation of the company, but there are many others to select from at Amazon.com, or your health food store.  Also, know that aloe vera is a amazing plant and offers many health benefits, particularly if you ingest it (the liquid form).  I drink it every day with my vitamin drink, as it helps with digestion and cleansing.

For some general nutritional guidance that could help support skin health see this post entitled: Vitamins and Minerals — The Basics.

A Detox Bath Works Wonders

So, do apply lotions, but, as I said, pay attention to helping your skin from the inside out.  Besides cleansing, you can also do a detox bath that will quickly make you feel tingly and good.

Prepare this:

1. Fill up a tub with hot water.

2. If you have a window in the bathroom, crack it a bit.

3. Pour 1 cup of baking soda, 1 cup of sea salt and 1 heaping tablespoon of ginger powder* into the tub.

4. Fetch a big glass of purified water (over 8 oz if available) and mix in trace minerals if you have them (if not, no worries).

5. Grab your loofah (skin brush sponge-thingie).

Now, do this:

1. Take 250 milligrams of regular Niacin** and wait for the flush.***

2. Swirl around the water mixture… add more hot water if needed.

2. Get in the tub.

3. Soak a bit and then scrub yourself from head to toe with the loofah (no soap).

4. Rest and repeat the scrubbing three times… stay in the tub for at least 20 minutes.

5. Take a shower and scrub head to toe with soap and the loofah, rinse and shine.

* Be careful with the ginger powder as it can “burn” if too much is used, particularly in sensitive areas of the body.  I suggest you start with 1 tablespoon and add when ready.  If the amount you use does not produce some heat (other than temperature) in the tub, add more.

** Niacin comes in two forms (that I know about): the stuff that allows the capillaries in your skin to be flushed with blood (which can feel uncomfortable, like a sunburn), or non-flush.  You want the flush kind, such as Solgar Niacin.  Be careful with the amount, because the flushing can be uncomfortable (although the detox bath alleviates this quite a bit). 250 milligrams may be too much on an empty stomach.  I use 500 milligrams, but I’m accustomed to this craziness.

*** Have I said enough about “flushing”?  If you don’t like the feeling of being sunburned, be careful with the amount of Niacin you take (see above).  Same thing with the ginger powder (see above).

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Supplement Disclaimer

Just as with the descriptive statements made at the various company sites that manufacture and/or sell the supplement products presented in this blog, none, or nearly none, of the potential benefits stated here have been evaluated by the FDA. Likewise none, or nearly none, of the products here can be represented to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Before engaging a supplement program, it always makes sense to get the advice of your health practitioner.

Related posts:

1. Detoxifying Your Way to Nirvana
2. Soothe Your July 4th Sunburn
3. Sunscreen Lotions that Work – Know Your Sunscreen