The IAA One Minute Blog

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. Ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun are the main cause of skin cancer. Insurance Administrator of America wants you to be safe this summer by participating in UV Safety Month.

UV Safety Month

How can UV Safety Month make a difference? According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there are steps you can take this month that can make a difference:

• Encourage families to adopt good habits together, like wearing sunscreen and limiting their time in the sun.
  
• Motivate teachers and administrators to teach kids about the harm caused by UV rays and why it is important to protect yourself.
• Identify youth leaders in your community who can talk to their peers about taking steps to prevent skin cancer.
  

Take steps this month to help spread the word about UV safety.

How to Protect Your Skin

The need to protect your skin from the sun has become very clear over the years. The harmful UV rays from both the sun and indoor tanning "sun lamps" can cause many other complications besides skin cancer--such as eye problems and a weakened immune system. Learn to protect your skin from these complications and more:

• Apply broad spectrum sunscreen: Generously apply broad spectrum sunscreen to all overexposed skin. The broad spectrum sunscreen protects against overexposure to Ultraviolet A and Ultraviolet B rays.
• Avoid the burn: Sunburns significantly increase one's lifetime risk of developing skin cancer.
• Children: Children need special attention when having fun in the sun. They tend to spend more time outdoors, can burn more easily than adults, and may not be aware of the dangers of too much sun exposure.
  
• Go for the shade: Stay out of the sun if possible between the peak burning hours. According to the Centers for Disease Control, these hours are between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm.
• Reapply broad spectrum sunscreen throughout the day: Even if the sunscreen is labeled as "water-resistant," it must be reapplied throughout the day. To be safe, apply sunscreen every two hours.
  
• Use extra caution: Be careful when near reflective surfaces, such as water, snow and sand.
• Use extra caution at high altitudes: You can experience more UV exposure at higher altitudes because there is less atmosphere to absorb UV radiation.
• Wear proper clothing: Wearing clothes that will protect your skin from harmful UV rays is important. Remember to protect your head and eyes with a hat and UV resistant sunglasses.
  

If you are unsure about the strength of the sun's rays use the shadow test: if your shadow is shorter than you are, the sun's rays are at their strongest and it is important to protect yourself.

Warning Signs of Skin Cancer

Each year more than 3.5 million cases of skin cancer are diagnosed in the U.S., over 90% of which are caused by the sun's UV rays. Even a single sunburn increases your risk of developing melanoma. Suffering five or more sunburns doubles your lifetime risk. Some warning signs of skin cancer are a skin mole, beauty mark or brown spot that:

• Appears after age 21
• Changes color or appears pearly, translucent,tan, brown, black or multicolored
• Changes in texture
• Increases in size thickness
• Is asymmetrical
• Is bigger than 6mm, the size of a pencil eraser
• Is irregular in outline or border
  

Skin cancer develops primarily in areas of exposed skin including the scalp, face, lips, ears, neck, chest, arms, and hands.

What IAA has to Say

IAA wants you to have fun this summer, just be careful when the fun is out in the sun! When precautions are taken, it reduces your risk of developing skin cancer. Remember, with IAA one call does it all.

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