The Whole Truth About Sunlight, Cancer and Sunscreens
Humans have been living on this Earth for at least four million years. The sun has been shining for about 4.6 billion years and it has been shining on our Earth for most of that time. Strangely, no animal ever contracted skin cancer from being out in the sun and humans rarely did until about 50 years ago.
We have been told that this increase in skin cancer is due to a “hole” in the ozone layer. Actually there is no “hole”. However, the ozone layer is thinning in some areas, predominately at the South Pole in the fall and winter seasons. The ozone layer, approximately 10 kilometers (6 miles) above the earth, acts as a shield to prevent dangerous radiation from reaching the biosphere. There is also a minor amount of thinning in the northern hemisphere and little or none in the tropics.
The incidence of all forms of skin cancer are highest in the tropics, where there is virtually no thinning of the ozone layer.
In 1991 Professor Johan Moan of the Norwegian Cancer Institute found that the yearly incidence of melanoma in Norway had increased by 350% for men and by 440% for women between 1957 and 1984. He also determined that there had been no change in the ozone layer over this period of time. He concludes his report in the British Journal of Cancer by stating: “Ozone depletion is not the cause of the increase in skin cancers”. Unless these folks spent a fair amount of time hanging out in the Antarctic wearing bikinis, he is probably correct.
Skin cancer has increased all over the world, about 90% in the USA during 1974-1990. This skin cancer increase is too large (90%) compared with the expected value (40%) from ozone depletion. Also, cancer does not develop immediately after exposure to the sun. The sunburns may occur within hours; but cancer development and detection may take years or decades. If the depletion of the ozone layer over Antarctica is not causing the huge increase in skin cancer, what is?
It is interesting to note that chemical sunscreen was introduced in the late 1920’s and by 1936 the first commercially available sunscreen product was being sold by L’Oreal. Also, Monsanto began producing artificial chemicals in 1901. Why is this bit of information important?
First, let’s take a look at our skin, and the damage we do to it before we even go out into the sun.
There are an estimated 250 species of bacteria that reside on your skin. They are there for a reason. Sebum, secreted by the sebaceous glands in the skin, is an oily substance composed of wax monoesters, triglycerides, free fatty acids and squalene, and again, it is there for a reason. These bacteria and oily substances PROTECT the skin. We seem to have invented endless ways to destroy this protective barrier; starting with the water we bathe, shower and swim in. A survey by the Environmental Working Group found 141 unregulated chemicals and an additional 119 for which the Environmental Protection Agency has set health-based limits. Most common among the chemicals found were disinfection byproducts, nitrates, chloroform, barium, arsenic and copper, and of course chlorine, fluoride and PCBs , THMs and heavy metals. These chemicals not only strip the skin of its natural protection, they are absorbed through the skin and into the bloodstream where they continue to cause damage.
We also have a tendency to destroy this protective barrier with various chemicals and soaps. We slather our skin with every toxic chemical imaginable, most of which gets absorbed into our bloodstream. There are over 150 cancer-causing chemicals currently used in cosmetics. Although federal law requires products containing these ingredients to carry a written warning label, the FDA does not enforce this law. The FDA claims that these products are safe because they are not consumed orally. Can it be possible that the folks at the FDA are not aware of the many drugs that are administered through the skin because the skin is porous and allows most drugs and chemicals to be absorbed?
You would be amazed to find what the FDA allows to be sold as long as it says, “for external use only.” The assumption is that it will stay external and not be absorbed into the body, so its toxicity is irrelevant. Hello!! Who are we kidding? Sunscreen ingredients absorb into the blood, and most are linked to toxic effects. Some release skin-damaging free radicals in sunlight, some disrupt hormone systems, several are strongly linked to allergic reactions, and others build up in the body or the environment. According to the Environmental Working Group only 15% of 952 products analyzed actually block UVA and UVB radiation, remain stable in sunlight, and contain few toxic chemicals.

Here is a short list of some of the stuff we regularly put on our skin without a second thought. The toxic effects recognized by the FDA are included:
OXYBENZONE (BENZOPHENONE-)
(Active Ingredient)858%Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Violations, Restrictions & Warnings, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Enhanced skin absorption, Biochemical or cellular level changes
PEG-100 STEARATE 479%Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Irritation (skin, eyes, or lungs), Contamination concerns
(ETHYLENE OXIDE 1,4DIOXANETRIETHANOLAMINE767%Cancer, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Contamination concerns
(NITROSAMINES) MICRONIZED ZINC OXIDE
(Active Ingredient)276%Violations, Restrictions & Warnings, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Occupational hazards
TITANIUM DIOXIDE 173%Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Occupational hazards, Biochemical or cellular level changes
(HYDROQUINONE)OCTINOXATE (OCTYLMETHOXYCINNAMATE)
OCTINOXATE (ETHYLHEXYL METHOXYCINNAMATE)
(Active Ingredient)478%Allergies/immunotoxicity, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Enhanced skin absorption, Biochemical or cellular level changes
BUTYLPARABEN 477%Developmental/reproductive toxicity, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Organ system toxicity (non-reproductive), Biochemical or cellular level changes.
There are HUNDREDS more but I don’t want to bore you here, just WAKE you up!! Is it logical to cover yourself with this stuff, then go out into the sun and let it bake in? Geez, you can cause untold damage to your largest external organ AND your internal organs simultaneously!
The sun is NOT your enemy! Sure, in some areas at some times you will have to spend less time in the sun to avoid getting burned, but sunlight is VITAL Sunlight allows your body to produce natural vitamin D and increased melatonin, both of which are essential.
Vitamin D levels are linked to survival rates for cancer patients. Those people who live in sunnier southern latitudes and have higher vitamin D levels are less likely to die from cancer than people in northern latitudes.
Rates of major cancers such as colon, lung, breast and prostate increased from north to south, while survival rates decreased from north to south.
Vitamin D may protect against cancer by discouraging out-of-control cell reproduction and hindering the formation of new blood vessels for tumors. Receptors that respond to vitamin D have been found in almost every cell in your body, from your brain to your bones. Optimizing your vitamin D levels, (through safe sun exposure) could help you to prevent as many as 16 different types of cancer including pancreatic, lung, breast, ovarian, prostate, and colon cancers. Vitamin D does not just impact your cancer risk slightly; it can cut your risk by as much as 60 %.
The foods you eat have a tremendous influence over your skin’s sensitivity to sunlight. For example a B vitamin deficiency causes a heightened susceptibility to sunburn. In cultures that rely heavily on corn, such as our culture’s Standard American Diet which is corn-based, vitamin B deficiency is quite common. One of the first signs of niacin deficiency is skin sensitivity to sunlight and eventually the skin becomes rough, thick and dry with some darkly pigmented areas. Although some B vitamins are added to processed foods, they are chemicals, not food, and as such are not absorbed by the body.
The first stage of Pellagra (niacin deficiency) is extreme redness of skin exposed to the sun, this is where the term “redneck” came from, 18th and 19th century fieldworkers who were niacin deficient due to eating corn that was improperly processed, like the corn we eat today, except ours is often GENETICALLY MODIFIED also. Just one more reason to eat organic, whole foods.
This is not to say that you should not be cautious. A severe burn is obviously damaging. However, a mild sunburn is not dangerous as long as the skin has been allowed to retain its natural protective barrier and is not marinated in a chemical cocktail. A slight sunburn is your body’s natural way of letting you know that it’s time to get out of the sun, it also helps to remove the outermost layer of dead skin with fresh new skin, thus reducing wrinkles! People pay money for this, it’s called “dermabrasion” and “chemical peels”, you can have it done naturally at no charge by getting a mild sunburn.
Sunlight is vital to almost every living organism, and is our greatest ally in sustaining good health.
If you feel that you really need to use protection, of all brands the highest rated non-toxic sunscreen is: KEYS SOAP SOLAR RT THERAPEAUTIC SUNBLOCK, SPF 30
Buy the best organic products here:
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July 7th, 2008 at 4:43 am
I knew it!!! I’m not a regular user of suncreen or any kind of skin lotion. I don’t like it and my skin doesn’t seem to need it so I don’t use it. I always knew I was being handed a line with the ozone thing!! I take common sense precautions, don’t go out in the middle of the day, wear a hat, things like that, but I knew sunscreen was a scam. Great post!!!
Flos last blog post..Ice Road Truckers
July 7th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I sure am glad that you have common sense and are not easily swayed by the “voices of authority”!
It just kills me to see folks slathering this stuff on their kids though.
July 8th, 2008 at 8:34 am
I am THRILLED you said this succinctly!
I am one *slathering* it on my beloved’s child because well..you know… she’s 4 and wants to stay in the new pool for 8 hours. But then I asked myself one day…”I never had this gunk on me and people still think I’m 10 years younger” [plus i shaked and baked in the florida sun without ever wearing sunscreen *and* what's better than experience?]
Yet, my sister and other fairer women of my age who wore/wear sunscreens have liver spots on their chests and they are YOUNG [24...28?] and I have to think there may be a correlation! Getting “older” I began wearing sunscreen due to my Mom’s insistence and I think I got some freckles due to it! I am not kidding.
My brain, after putting this stuff on Lil Bit for the 1 and a half months, started railing. So for the past couple weeks I’ve been mentioning it and looking it up on the internet trying to make my own correlations.
I am already distrustful of the FDA and recently I saw an image about the sunscreen industry being in cahoots with the whole ozone thing cause it furthers their agenda.
My Mimi…shaked and baked daily and then on the weekends as an older gal at Myrtle Beach. When she passed about near 80, she’d never had skin cancer.
One website said, “Rub it ON not IN.” That if you rub it IN, it can be harmful. [?] Well…goodness.
Samsaras last blog post..Top 7 Drunk and Alcoholic Related Episodes as a Kid
July 8th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Fortunately when I was a kid my mom always told me to never put anything on my skin and use soap on underarms only, yeah I actually listened, it just made sense. I’m in the sun as much as possible, middle of the day and everything for hours, and at 51 I look a lot younger than women my age. Getting a “base” tan is so important, especially for the little one, the body produces melatonin to protect the skin and melatonin is essential! Don’t get me going on the FDA!!! I’ll be posting on this someday, (I need 36 hour days) but go to the mercola.com website he has lots of awesome information
July 9th, 2008 at 2:17 am
I fully agree. Had an uncle, who lived to 86 and never, never used commercial sunscreens, saying that they were full of poisons.
The same goes for all of the other chemicals we are being peppered with on a daily basis. And guess what? The latest, multi-million-dollar studies show the benefits of vitamin D, provided best by the Sun.
July 9th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
We really have to get the word out on all these chemicals, I read “Our Stolen Future”, do you know there are hundreds of thousands of animals dieing because of the contamination? They tried to do studies with a “control” group, they COULDN’T FIND ANY! Right to the far reaches of the Earth, EVERYONE is contaminated with artificial chemicals, and the effects are disastrous.
We have to go 100% organic, sustainable farming, green technology, the Earth can’t take much more.
Thanks for your comment!
July 10th, 2008 at 1:32 am
I never bought into that either. I never used sun screen, and I’m 50…told I look like I’m in my 30’s. Always in the sun. I never put that stuff on my kids either.
July 10th, 2008 at 3:37 am
Hmm. I really, really, really must purchase an all-natural sunscreen… I’ll keep your recommendation in mind, although the price may be a little bit to steep for little ole me..
July 10th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Yeah, it’s really expensive, if you can manage to get a “base” tan then you’ll only need the sunscreen on certain areas like the nose and shoulders, so the sunscreen lasts a long time.
July 12th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
Wow, who would have thought. Living in Florida, the use of sunscreen in crammed down your throat. Just one more reason not to believe the media, and do your own research.
Thank you for a very informative article.
searchingwithins last blog post..One Woman’s Story of Abuse
July 14th, 2008 at 6:10 am
Very well written, informative post. I really enjoyed this, and think that your blog is great. Thanks!
peace,
Mike
livelife365
Mike Fosters last blog post..Turn Bad Habits Into Good Ones
July 16th, 2008 at 12:31 am
Thanks Mike, I appreciate your comment!