Articles and Links :: UV Facts

Most of us know that the sun can cause damage to our skin including aging and even cancer but most of us don’t know how or why.

There’s almost too much information out there and it’s easy to get confused about which UV ray does what, so we’re not quite sure what we’re supposed to be looking for to protect our skin.

It’s easier to know how to protect yourself if you know what you’re protecting yourself from.

The sun has 2 types of UV, (ultraviolet), rays:
1. UVA
2. UVB

UVA:
Long-wave solar rays of 320-400 nanometers, (billionths of a meter). These rays can go through windows, light clothing and even your windshield so if you’re outside you’re almost never safe from exposure to them.

UVA rays are the chief culprit responsible for aging. They are less likely than UVB to cause sunburn but UVA penetrates the skin more deeply, causing wrinkling and leathering of the skin.

Prolonged exposure of UVA cracks and shrinks the collagen and elastin of our skin.

Collagen is the fibrous protein of skin, cartilage, bone, and other connective tissue. Collagen makes up 75% of our skin. Along with elastin, it is responsible for skin strength and elasticity, and its degradation leads to wrinkles that accompany aging.

Elastin, is a protein in connective tissue that is elastic and allows the skin to resume it’s shape after stretching or contracting.

When UVA rays damage these components of our skin it looses strength and elasticity thus causing wrinkles, sagging, leathery skin and… aging!

If that’s not bad enough studies show that UVA not only exacerbates UVB's carcinogenic effects but may also directly induce some skin cancers, including melanomas.

UVB:
Short-wave solar rays of 290-320 nanometers.

UVB rays are more potent than UVA in producing sunburn. Therefore these rays are considered the main cause of skin cancers, (basal and squamous cell carcinomas and melanoma).

Sometimes called the "tanning ray", UVB rays stimulate the melanocyte cell, (located in the bottom layer of the skin), to produce the brown pigment melanin, producing a suntan as a defense against UV radiation.

Now that you know what you need to protect yourself from, (and why), you can find tips for reducing or eliminating your exposure to UVA and UVB rays in our article, "UV Protection Tips".