What are UV rays? Harm of UV rays to skin and tips to protect skin in summer

The harmful effects of UV rays not only make the skin bad, but also have many potential health problems such as eye damage, sunburn, skin aging, etc. How can you best protect your skin? Let’s learn more about UV rays and how to prevent skin damage through the article below.

What are UV rays? Where is it?

Sunlight is classified into 3 main groups based on wavelength: Infrared rays, light visible to the human eye, and UV rays.

UV (ultraviolet radiation) is a form of electromagnetic radiation that comes from the sun or other man-made sources such as tanning beds, soldering irons, etc. The term ultraviolet in ultraviolet means above the color. purple . Purple is the color with the shortest wavelength that our naked eye can see. Because it is beyond the wavelength of purple, UV rays are invisible to the human eye.

UV rays are electromagnetic waves with wavelengths shorter than that of visible light but longer than those of X-rays. The spectrum (the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation) of ultraviolet rays has a Rays can be divided into two regions: the near-ultraviolet region (with wavelengths from 380 to 200 nm) and the ultraviolet region, also known as the vacuum ultraviolet region (with wavelengths from 200 to 10 nm).

When it comes to the effects of UV rays on human health and the environment, UV rays fall into three categories :

• UVA rays (wavelengths from 380 – 315 nm) are also known as long waves or black light.
• UVB rays (wavelength 315 – 280 nm) are also known as midwaves.
• UVC light (wavelength shorter than 280 nm) is also known as short wave or sterilizing wave.

Some animals such as birds, reptiles, insects (e.g. bees) can see UV light . Some fruits, berries and seeds become more colorful in the UV environment than they are in light normally seen by the human eye, to attract insects and birds.

Some birds also have special shapes on their plumage that can only be seen under ultraviolet light, not visible under normal light.

The benefits that UV tanning bring are quite a lot. For example, UV rays help the body synthesize vitamin D; kill viruses and bacteria (by penetrating cell membranes, destroying DNA, preventing their ability to regenerate and multiply), useful when drying cloth diapers, underwear and towels outdoors; stimulates all major processes of the body (with sufficient UV levels),…

Effects of UV rays on your skin

Some of the harmful effects of UV rays include:

Causes skin cancer

UV rays are a prominent and common cause of cancer in the environment, as prolonged exposure to sunlight has the potential to cause basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and tumors. malignant. According to skincancer.org, up to 90% of skin cancers are caused by UV radiation.

Cause sunburn

Sunburn is a burn that occurs when skin cells are damaged, this condition is caused by the skin absorbing energy from UV rays. At that time, more blood will flow into the damaged skin to heal. That’s why your skin turns red when sunburned.

Damage to the immune system

Overexposure to UV radiation has an inhibitory effect on the immune system. Scientists think sunburn can change the distribution and function of white blood cells in humans within 24 hours of sun exposure.

This condition repeated too much with UV radiation can cause further damage to the body’s immune system.

Causes eye damage

Long-term exposure to ultraviolet rays or high intensity of ultraviolet rays damages tissues , causing “burns” on the surface of the eye, known as snow blindness or photokeratitis. .

These can increase the risk of eye damage such as cataracts (which, if left untreated, can lead to blindness), pterygium, and pterygium (pinguecula).

Causes skin aging

Ultraviolet rays have the ability to destroy collagen and connective tissue beneath the top layer of the skin, causing wrinkles, brown spots and loss of skin’s natural elasticity.

Differences between skin tone, wrinkles , or pigmentation on the underside and upper side of the same arm indicate the effects of sun exposure on the skin. A sunburned skin may look fine now, but it will soon wrinkle, which can cause skin cancer.

How to limit the harmful effects of UV rays on the skin in summer

Some suggested measures are as follows:

Use sunscreen

This is the most common and also the most effective. Choosing the right sunscreen product, you should also pay attention to the sun protection factors such as SPF and PA.

SPF stands for UVB protection, the higher the number, the stronger the protection against UVB rays. PA is an indicator of sun protection .

The greater the sum of this index, the greater the ability to protect the skin from UVA rays. You can choose products with index PA+++ to PA++++ for the best skin protection.

Pay attention to clothes when going out

– Use specialized sun-protective clothing such as sun-protective shirts, skirts, UV-blocking umbrellas, and sunglasses to prevent eye diseases.

– Avoid exposure to the sun during peak hours (11am to 2pm).

– Limit artificial radiation sources (light from computer screens, phones), use insulating films for glass doors in rooms or cars,…

Note the diet

You need to have a reasonable diet, note the addition of antioxidants found in foods (citrus, green tea, carrots, and red bell peppers, …) to increase the body’s protective ability. exposed to UV rays.

Use a mechanical sunscreen tool

To prevent harmful effects from prolonged heat, health experts recommend that people wear protective clothing , including sun-protective shirts such as long-sleeved shirts, collared jackets, long pants, etc. Dark colors, wide-brimmed hats to cover the face, neck and ears, should choose special sunscreen fabric.

In addition, when going out on the street, you need an umbrella or hat to cover your head, …

Reference and synthesis: hellobacsi, skincancer.org

Hopefully with the above information will help you get the necessary preparation when going out in the hot sun. If you have any questions, please let us know in the comments.