Sun Exposure

Summary

Ultraviolet (UV) rays are an invisible form of radiation. They can pass through your skin and damage your skin cells. Sunburns are a sign of skin damage. Suntans aren’t healthy, either. They appear after the sun’s rays have already killed some cells and damaged others. UV rays can cause skin damage during any season or at any temperature. They can also cause eye problems, wrinkles, skin spots, and skin cancer.

To protect yourself :

• Stay out of the sun when it is strongest (between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.)
• Use sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher
• Wear protective clothing
• Wear wraparound sunglasses that provide 100% UV ray protection
• Avoid sunlamps and tanning beds

Check your skin regularly for changes in the size, shape, color, or feel of birthmarks, moles, and spots. Such changes are a sign of skin cancer.

Food and Drug Administration

National Cancer Institute

Related Issues

• Actinic Cheilitis VisualDX
• Actinic Keratosis (Solar Keratosis) VisualDX
• Cutaneous Horn VisualDX
• Poikiloderma of Civatte VisualDX
• Vitamin D National Institutes of Health, Office of Dietary Supplements

Patient Handouts

• Actinic keratosis Medical Encyclopedia
• Polymorphic light eruption Medical Encyclopedia
• Sunburn Medical Encyclopedia

Find an Expert

• American Academy of Dermatology American Academy of Dermatology
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Protection Agency

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Keratosis, Actinic National Institutes of Health
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Sunscreening Agents National Institutes of Health

Teenagers

• Health Effects of Too Much Sun Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health

Start Here

• Health Effects of UV Radiation Environmental Protection Agency
• Sun Damage VisualDX
• Sunburn Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research

Treatments and Therapies

• How to Treat Sunburn American Academy of Dermatology

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Protecting Yourself from Sun Exposure National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Sun Safety Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Sunscreen: How to Help Protect Your Skin from the Sun Food and Drug Administration
• Tips to Stay Safe in the Sun: From Sunscreen to Sunglasses Food and Drug Administration

Journal Articles

• Sun Exposure

Children

• Should You Put Sunscreen on Infants? Not Usually Food and Drug Administration

Specifics

• Sun Allergy Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research
• Sun, UV Light, and Your Eyes American Academy of Ophthalmology

Encyclopedia

• Sun’s effect on skin Medical Encyclopedia

Images

• Sunburn VisualDX

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine

• Sunscreen in the Winter?