Summer is the happiest time of year. The beaches are active, we have a chance to work on our tans, and we have an excuse to lie about on the sand for hours while the sun is out. However, we are only starting to comprehend the effects of UV exposure and although there are some advantages we should be much more hesitant in our exposure to the sun. Let's break it down:

THE GOOD

One of the greatest elements the sun passes to the human body is often ignored. That is, short UVB rays are a major deliverer of Vitamin D. So what's so good about vitamin D? Vitamin D protects and increases the survival rates against a number of internal cancers such as colon cancer, lung cancer, breast cancer and prostate cancer, as well as many other diseases.

THE BAD

To even the kilter a little, it would be drastically under representative to exclude the fact that exposure to ultraviolet light, UVA or UVB, from sunlight accounts for 90% of the symptoms of premature skin aging, along with a host of other skin changes.

UV radiation is the chief instigators of:

Collagen breakdown - causing the formation solar scars and increasing the onset of wrinkles

Free radicals - which disturb cell function and alter genetic material such as RNA and DNA of the cell, which in turn increases wrinkles.

Texture Changes Caused by the Sun - causing a thickening of the skin that enhances coarse wrinkles and yellow discoloration of the skin; along with a thinning of the skin that causes fine wrinkles, easy bruising, and skin tearing.

Pigment Changes Caused by the Sun - enhances the occurance of freckles, and age spots or liver spots on the backs of the hands, chest, shoulders, arms, and upper back.

THE UGLY

Whereas the more extreme effects of UV radiation include:

Skin Bumps Caused by the Sun - in other words, an increased number of moles and precancerous lesions called actinic keratoses, along with seborrheic keratosis which appear as warty lesions stuck onto the skin.

Skin Cancer Caused by the Sun - such as the 3 most common skin cancers: melanoma, basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma. All of which have the propensity to be fatal.

PROTECTING SUN DAMAGED SKIN

The most obvious method of protection against sun damaged skin is to avoid any unnecessary exposure to the sun's harmful rays. In addition, there are a number of natural skincare creams available that assist in fighting the harsh damage caused by the sun.