Sun Smarts

Here are myths about sun, skin care, tanning beds, etc.

You don't need to wear sunscreen if you have dark skin. FALSE.
"Any skin color can get skin cancer," says Heather Woolery-Lloyd, a dermatologist in Miami, "Also, the number on complaint in patients with skin of color is uneven skin tone and hyperpigmentation. Sunlight makes hyperpigmentation worst, and you can never address these issues if a person does not wear sunscreen."

I read somewhere that sunscreen can expire. TRUE.
The active ingredients in sunscreens can lose their potency, so check the expiration date on the bottle. "To be safe, toss them after a year," says Dr. Bank.

I don't need sunblock when it's cloudy. FALSE.
You need to wear sunscreen every day, full stop. Remember: It's a beautiful day above the clouds, which offer little UV protection. So never skip the sunblock--ever.

Oral sunblocks can protect you from sun damage. TRUE.
So-called "internal sunscreens" can be used as additional sun protection. These supplements--one is called SunPill--contain potent antioxidants like green tea extract and the fern polypodium leucotomos, which help skin resist sun damage. They're great insurance but should be used in conjunction with sunscreen--not as a replacement. "These pills prevent damage to skin cells after sunlight hits the skin," says Dr. Verallo-Rowell. "Unlike sunblock, where you prevent the sun from producing chemical changes, antioxidants act later to quench the fire that has already started."

Tanning booths aren't all that bad. FALSE.
A tan is a signal that cells have been damaged, says Fairbrother. When you use a tanning booth, you're getting deeper radiation than you'd get from the sun. "Tanning booths also give people a false sense of security," she says. "A tan only gives you an SPF protection of two to four compared to sunblock, which gives you SPF of 30 or more."