Elevate Magazine, July/August 2014

"Much of the negative impact of sun damage may not be seen immediately."

Summer's here - cue sunshine, bare skin, and long days spent outside; but along with these perks, warmer temperatures also mean the susceptibility of our skin to the sun's harmful UV rays. Dr. Diane Wong, MD, owner of Glow Medi Spa, explains: "Much of the negative impact of sun damage may not be seen immediately. For instance, wrinkles and sunspots may be caused by sun damage in your childhood, but may not be apparent until later in our life. This delayed reaction also holds true for skin cancer."

GLOW GIRL

How to keep your skin healthy, protected and beautiful this summer.

By Nicole Lippay

Summer's here - cue sunshine, bare skin, and long days spent outside; but along with these perks, warmer temperatures also mean the susceptibility of our skin to the sun's harmful UV rays.

You may be surprised at how quickly unprotected skin can sustain damage, but here's why. Since 1979, the ozone layer has decreased between four and six per cent per decade over North America (Stats Canada). With continued damage from fossil fuel emissions, the ozone layer becomes less capable of performing what its supposed to be doing: filtering the sun's ultra-violet (UV) rays to protect us from UV radiation. By each percentage that the ozone depletes, UV rays increase by one or two per cent at ground level. While this may not sound like much, scientists continue to explore the harmful affects of UVA and UVB rays to our skin. Dr. Diane Wong, MD, owner of Glow Medi Spa, explains: "Much of the negative impact of sun damage may not be seen immediately. For instance, wrinkles and sunspots may be caused by sun damage in your childhood, but may not be apparent until later in our life. This delayed reaction also holds true for skin cancer." We all covet bronzed, glowy summer skin, but there is a way to safely achieve this aesthetic without aging our skin prematurely or - more importantly - putting our health at risk.

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