Summer is here and that means peely-wally Scots everywhere shedding their clothes whenever the sun makes an appearance…
We need exposure to the sun. Vitamin D is created in our bodies by direct sunlight and is a vital ingredient for health. But the sun can also be deadly – skin cancer is the fifth most common cancer in Scotland, although survival rates are at an all-time high.
The sun is also the number one cause of ageing, creating lines, wrinkles and saggy skin. So how do we protect ourselves while still enjoying the benefits of a beautiful sunny day?
Dr Marc Ronert is medical director of Image Skincare, the world’s most advanced cosmeceutical company, available in 33 countries worldwide including Scotland. His ground-breaking formulas tackle skin damage at a cellular level, including photo damage from the sun.
He said: “Even skin tone is a universal sign of youth and beauty. As you age, photo damage from the sun can create dark spots and uneven pigmentation on the skin, along with wrinkles and rough skin texture.”
To prevent ageing on the face and neck, he suggests using a daily mosturiser with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30, to be worn every day – even during the winter months. It is important that your daily sunscreen contains both UVA and UVB protection. Image Skincare’s Prevention+ range is specially formulated for everyday use as a stand-alone moisturiser, or as a primer under make-up.
Prevention+ also comes in the form of a tinted moisturiser and is available as a body spray sunscreen. “We searched all over the world to find revolutionary ingredients for our new line, and Prevention+ is far superior to anything we have tried or tested to date,” said Dr Ronert.
The revolutionary formula is the first in the industry to contain a form of zinc oxide that absorbs easily into the skin and doesn’t leave a white, sticky residue.
The benefits of Prevention+ don’t stop with the new formulation. It also contains stem cells, potent antioxidants and botanical UVB boosters that help protect the skin at a cellular level. All Image Skincare products contain no parabens, petrochemicals and are not tested on animals.
But protecting your skin from the sun is not just about preventing lines and wrinkles. Skin cancer cases have soared in Scotland since the 70s, probably as a result of package holidays to the sun coupled with the use of sun beds, according to Cancer Research UK. Malignant melanoma is now the fifth most common cancer in Scotland.
The charity has launched a campaign which advises people to stay out of the sun when it is at its strongest, usually between 11am and 3pm.It also recommends wearing a wide-brimmed hat, a T-shirt and sunglasses when in the sun and sunscreen with a minimum SPF of 15.
Celtic and Scottish footballing legend Tommy Burns died of malignant melanoma in 2008 aged just 51. A mole on his leg which had been there for decades grew to about the size a cornflake. When it started to itch he went to his doctor who diagnosed stage IV malignant melanoma. Two years later he was dead.
His family – widow Rosemary, daughters Emma and Jenna and sons Michael and Jonathan set up the Tommy Burns Skin Cancer Trust in 2009.
Emma said: “You think it will only happen to someone else. But my message to anyone who thinks there is something wrong is go and get it checked out.”
Signs to look out for include a mole or lump which has changed shape or size, is itchy or bleeding, or a mole which looks quite different to other freckles and moles round about it.
Lisa Adams, Cancer Research UK spokeswoman for Scotland said: “Sadly we know more and more people in Scotland are being diagnosed with malignant melanoma each year. But the good news is that survival is among the highest for any cancer. More than eight out of 10 survive the disease.”
Image Skincare Prevention+ – see www.renaissance-skincare.com
Local stockists include: Lyndsay McKay Beauty, Nuffield Health and Wellbeing, Aberdeen, 01224 211310; Fantasia Beauty Boutique and Medispa, Kingsmill Hotel, Damfield Road, Inverness, 01463 243244; Kirriemuir Dental, The Roods, Kirriemuir, 01677 5572711; Etrebeau, Clarendon Road, Stirling, 07702 762223.