Sun safety 101

This May is Skin Cancer Awareness, and the team at 40 Square wants you to practice skin safety during these months when we all want to enjoy the outdoors.

Overexposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays causes most cases of melanoma, the deadliest kind of skin cancer. To lower your skin cancer risk, protect your skin from the sun and avoid indoor tanning.

Summer is full of outdoor activities, from field work to lounging at the cabin. You probably put sunscreen on yourself and your kids when you go to the pool or the beach. But do you know you should protect your skin with more than just sunscreen anytime you’re outside?

We all love to soak up the sun, but protection is important all year round, and it’s best to use several different kinds. When you’re working in the yard, watching a ballgame, or taking an afternoon walk, make sun safety an everyday habit so you can avoid getting a sunburn and lower your chance of getting skin cancer.

New Skin Cancer Awareness Photo Booth!

Take a selfie at the Skin Cancer Awareness virtual photo booth with custom frames so you can make a statement. If you’re doing the #SkinCheckChallenge, choose that frame for your selfie, GIF or boomerang. If you’re a skin cancer warrior, snap a photo with our #ThisIsSkinCancer frame.

What’s in your tote bag?

Here’s a tip to help make sure you and your family stay sun-safe: Get ready for summer with a tote bag full of different ways to protect your skin. Keep the tote bag handy so you can grab it whenever you head out for summer fun!

Some important things to pack:

• A lightweight long-sleeved shirt or cover-up.
• A hat with a wide brim that shades your face, head, ears, and neck.
• Sunglasses that block both UVA and UVB rays.
• Sunscreen with SPF 15 or higher and both UVA and UVB (broad spectrum) protection
  

Fast Facts About Skin Cancer

• Skin cancer is the most common cancer in the United States and includes different types.
• Unprotected skin can be damaged by the sun’s UV rays in as little as 15 minutes.
• Even if it’s cool and cloudy, you still need protection. UV rays, not the temperature, do the damage.
• Anyone can get skin cancer, but some things put you at higher risk.
• The most common signs of skin cancer are changes on your skin, such as a new growth, a sore that doesn’t heal, or a change in a mole.

• The American Cancer Society estimates that in the United States this year there will be about 100,350 new cases of melanoma and nearly 7,000 deaths from it.
• Melanoma is more common in men overall, but before age 50 the rates are higher in women than in men.
• The number of cases of the more frequent skin cancers, basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma, has been increasing for many years.