Forums >Gears and Wears>Sunblock?
rectumdamnnearkilledem
We're pretty serious about sunblock in our house. DH developed a small spot of melanoma on his arm before 40. We caught it early. I made him see our PCP about a mole that showed-up out of nowhere. It didn't look like a melanoma -- PCP also thought it was nothing serious. It was caught very early, before it had grown any further than the most superficial layer of skin. He still had 1 armpit lymph node removed.
We wear sport sunblock and on our bikes we wear cooling UV arm sleeves. I run with a Buff covering my forehead, sunblock from my eyes, down. And always wear photochromic sunglasses. Melanoma can develop in our eyes and UV damage causes cataracts.
Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to
remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.
~ Sarah Kay
All systems Go!
zz, I hear ya. Melanoma touched both my parents when they moved from WI to TX to retire. My dear wife and dear daughter have drilled on me pretty hard that this fair skinned, blue eyed, chrome domed body is pre-disposed. I always run with a hat and my prescription Oakleys with Transition lenses with UV protection -- even when it's dark o'thrity in the morning. I've tried many different running hats, of various material and some with neck drapes. I've settled on 2: the Under Armor running cap and the Coolibar Convertible Fishing hat. I wear the Coolibar hat on runs in bright sunlight or when it's really windy. It has a removable chin strap that has kept that hat from flying into the river several times when I've been running over the Indian River viaducts on the Atlantic coast of FL. The Coolibar also has a wide brim that some my call the Korean-ladies-sun-hat and it has a neck drape that can be tucked inside the top of the hat in a zippered compartment. A pretty versatile hat. The rather simple Under Armor hat is for those over cast days or those really hot days when the temp gets 90+. It is a cooler hat with better wicking and better air flow around my face. On those 90+ days, I just goop up with 30 SPF like you do -- all exposed skin below the eyes.
I usually run in a long sleeve running shirts from Coolibar or Solumbra that have at least SPF 50 protection. However, once the temp gets above 80 I gotta go with a tank top to keep cool and just resort to more sunscreen. I think this scheme still allows vitamin D production, but protects me from the damaging effects. These are the adjustments I've made after moving to the FL latitude where the sun is more damaging than up north.
The dentist says I only need to brush the teeth I want to keep. The demonologist tells me to cover the skin I want to keep.