Feel the Burn

I admit it, I'm not the most disciplined when it comes to wearing sunscreen. If I go to the beach or the lake, sure I'll put some on. But, I run outside nearly everyday and very rarely put on sunscreen for that. After looking over some statistics and getting a slight sunburn on my scalp over the past few days I realize that I need to change my habits. Sunscreen is such a great form of protection from skin damage and cancer. Yeah it smells a little funny and makes us a bit slimy, but I think I'd rather deal with that than skin cancer. Here are some statistics from the Skin Cancer Foundation that may help you choose to put on a little sunscreen before you exercise outside today.

-About 90 percent of non-melanoma skin cancers are associated with exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun.
-Up to 90 percent of the visible changes commonly attributed to aging are caused by the sun.
-Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. More than 3.5 million cases in two million people are diagnosed annually.
-One blistering sunburn in childhood or adolescence more than doubles a person's chances of developing melanoma later in life.
-A person's risk for melanoma doubles if he or she has had five or more sunburns at any age.

Let's all take a step towards prevention and lather up!

6/24/2010 | Daily Step Total = 18192