Wear sunscreen people!!!!

[Crim]

Excellent article on pgatour.com

" Once dubbed one of the world’s sexiest men by People magazine, Adam Scott looked a bit more garish after a procedure in 2011 to remove a Basil Cell Carcinoma, a form of non-melanoma skin cancer, from his face."

Full article here.

http://www.pgatour.com/news/2014/06/18/rory-sabbatini-adam-scott-skin-cancer.html

[saevel25]

Just on a side note, if you are going to go with sunscreen find one that has UVA and UVB protection. For years sunscreen only protected against UVB, but test have shown UVA is what causes DNA damage to the skin.

I use SPF 50 sunscreen with both, I haven't burned yet this year. It last me a good 9 holes of golf.

[isukgolf]

Ironically I am headed to the skin doc in a few minutes ... Had skin cancer removed 3 years ago, go every 3 months and remove "bad" spots now ... It's really important to wear sunscreen ... Especially for the younger folks ...

[rft63]

I have started wearing long sleeve Dri-Fit T-shirts by Hanes this year. They are fairly cheap and come in a multitude of colors. I live in Central Texas and it gets warm, but overheating has not been a problem. I did this because I don't like sunscreen on my arms, I do use it on my legs and the parts of my face not protected by a wide brim hat. I started having "spots" taken off at my last physical. I may not look cool in my long sleeves and hat, but hopefully I can keep from having to have more "spots" taken off.

[RonTheSavage]

I hate starting posts with "As a Black Man" But here goes My wife (who is white by the way and works as an Oncology nurse) makes me wear sun screen but I thank her for it. I always thought my skin had some sort of "built in UV protection" but she told me that was BS. So yes I carry sunscreen in the bag and use it regularly. It's always fun when I run out to go buy some, I get a confused look here and there. :-P We all need UV protection!

[boogielicious]

I hate starting posts with "As a Black Man" But here goes

My wife (who is white by the way and works as an Oncology nurse) makes me wear sun screen but I thank her for it. I always thought my skin had some sort of "built in UV protection" but she told me that was BS. So yes I carry sunscreen in the bag and use it regularly. It's always fun when I run out to go buy some, I get a confused look here and there. We all need UV protection!

As a puffy white Irish-Italian, I agree wholeheartedly. I used to tan when I was young even with sunscreen (I was a lifeguard).  Now it is minimum 30 but mostly 50 SPF all the time.

[isukgolf]

update:  Just got back form the doc ... one biopsy ...  4 "burn" spots with the cryo stuff ... will wait for results on biospy

I wear the Nike sleeves ... but unfortunately my damage was done in my teen/20/30's ... never wore sun screen, hat, etc ...

So I again implore the younger guys/gals now is the time for you to be concerned... old guys like me are just managing the damage done at your age ... wear damn sun protection!!!!!!!!

[Zeph]

I always wear sunscreen when playing golf or spending that much time out in the sun.

[Strandly]

I put the stuff on my nose and tops of my ears but that's about it.  Being a sun repelling Norwegian seems to help tremendously for all the other places.

[Dave2512]

Not much cancer in my family and I am of Sicilian descent, type IV skin, so not as much risk but still recommended I wear at least SPF15. I have some spray in my bag but rarely use it. I'm not that worried about it. It certainly less of a health risk than all the beer I drink.

[saevel25]

Not much cancer in my family and I am of Sicilian descent, type IV skin, so not as much risk but still recommended I wear at least SPF15. I have some spray in my bag but rarely use it. I'm not that worried about it. It certainly less of a health risk than all the beer I drink.

That doesn't mean much at all. Even darker skin people can get skin cancer. This is why having both UVA and UVB protection is important. For years people just got UVB protection, and you didn't burn, but didn't protect you from the rays that cause DNA damage. Actually it helped promote it since people would be outside longer.

[Dave2512]

That doesn't mean much at all. Even darker skin people can get skin cancer. This is why having both UVA and UVB protection is important. For years people just got UVB protection, and you didn't burn, but didn't protect you from the rays that cause DNA damage. Actually it helped promote it since people would be outside longer.

Yes it does, different skin types and family history play a role in risk. I never said it's impossible for darker skinned people to get skin cancer but the risk is less. Don't take my word for look it up, you can start with the Fitzpatrick Skin Type scale.

[jamo]

I've got one of my twice-annual scare sessions with my dermatologist in a couple weeks. He's had to remove a few moles here and there, but I'm pretty fastidious about applying (and re-applying) sunscreen frequently when I'm outdoors.

[dennyjones]

Interesting reading regarding clothes and their ability to block UV.    This is not my article, I just found it.

What's the UPF of a T-Shirt or jeans?

The short answer is, it varies . The three factors that most influence the UV transmission factor of clothing are kind of obvious:

• Material : Some materials are better at absorbing UV than others; for example, the paper cited below suggests that polyester absorbs more UV light (particularly UVB) than cotton.

• Weave : The thicker and more tightly woven a piece of fabric is, the less light it lets through.

• Color : Dyes work by absorbing various frequencies of visible light, and many of them will absorb UV too. Of course, high light absorption at visible frequencies doesn't necessarily imply high UV absorption, but as a general rule of thumb, white or lightly colored fabrics do tend to let more UV through than darker fabrics.

In addition, there are also "invisible dyes" that can absorb UV without darkening the visible color of the fabric. Some UV-absorbent laundry additives are sold specifically for that purpose, but many laundry detergents also contain fluorescent compounds called optical brighteners that absorb some UV light and re-emit it in the visible spectrum. Also, getting the fabric wet will change its UV transmittance, typically increasing it.

For some numerical values, I did a quick search on Google Scholar and found a paper titled "Clothing as protection from ultraviolet radiation: which fabric is most effective?" by Sandra Davis, Linda Capjack, Nancy Kerrand Robert Fedosejcvs, published in 1997 in the International Journal of Dermatology 36(5). Alas, the on-line version of the paper is behind a paywall, but I'll quote a few relevant sample SPF values from their table 3 below, courtesy of my university library's on-line subscription:

• Lightweight cotton jersey knit, typical of T-shirt fabrics: SPF 4 (white) / 18 (dyed blue).
• Heavy cotton twill weave, similar to 8 oz. denim: SPF 12 (white) / 166 (dyed blue).

The measured SPF value of 166 for blue denim is basically off the scale: for practical purposes, blue jeans don't let any UV through at all. The relatively low SPF of the white cotton twill is a bit surprising, though, and indeed is what prompted the authors to test the effects of the blue dye:

"The low SPF of 13 [in table 1] for the white cotton twill (jean fabric) was surprising, as previous researchers recommended denim as suitable protection for many sun-sensitive patients. In a pre-test, a sample of blue denim taken from a pair of jeans was tested in the same manner as the above samples and produced a high SPF value. Since the white twill differs only in color from most denim, the indigo dye in blue denim might be an important UV absorber. [...] Dyeing the fabrics dark blue increased the SPF by more than a factor of three for all cotton fabrics."

Still, even an SPF of 12 is nothing to sneer at, particularly since the SPF values for clothing are not subject to the same kind of inflation as those marketed for dermal sunscreens (which are typically only valid if the product is applied thickly and frequently reapplied). You might be able to tan a little bit under white jeans if you spend a lot of time in sunlight, but probably not so you'd notice. The SPF 4 measured for the white T-shirt fabric is pretty low, though: it's a lot better than nothing, but it might not be enough to prevent sunburn if you spend a lot of time outdoors.

However, this study did not cover the effects of laundry additives; for that, we can look at "Improving Knit Fabric UPF Using Consumer Laundry Products: A Comparison of Results Using Two Instruments" by Jihyun Kim, Janis Stone, Patricia Crews, Mack Shelley II and Kathryn L. Hatch from 2004.

In this study, the authors tested the effects of two off-the-shelf laundry detergents containing optical brighteners, one laundry additive sold as an optical brightener and one sold as a UV-absorber. While their numerical values don't seem directly comparable, they do report a more than 3-fold increase in SPF for all the products, comparable to the effects of the blue dye in the Davis et al. study, although, for the detergents, the full effect was only achieved after the cloth had been washed over a dozen times.

So my rough, unscientific conclusion from all this would be that, if you're planning to wear jeans and a white T-shirt while hiking in the mountains or sailing, you should either buy a special UV-protective T-shirt, wash your normal T-shirt with a UV-absorbent laundry additive, or just apply sunscreen under it. But you don't need to worry about the jeans — there's no way you'll get sunburn under those.

[joekelly]

Right.  The more susceptible to sun damage to skin, type I esp, the more protection needed.  Lots of damage caused during childhood and youth.  The damage is disrupted, mutated,  DNA in the skin cells caused by the radiation..  Eventually, maybe decades later, some of this damage comes to the forefront and mutated cells, cancer cells , may arise. Sure, they are some 'maybes' here, but that is true in all biological systems.  Protection from the radiation is important,, esp if white skin.  I could never, ever, expose myself like a Melanesian or African person: that would be suicide. Am i envious of the darker folks, certainly.  Hit balls 6 hours a day in equatorial Borneo, as VJ did, totally out of the question for me, or Rory or GMac.

Leave the baseball cap in the car and cover the ears, ala Sam Snead or Greg Norman. Cover the arms always with sleeves. Walter Hagen won many tourneys wearing long sleeved shirts and a tie. Or use the arm condoms, lot of colors.  For me it's always long trousers but since the angle of the radiation on the legs is greater than on the arms,  some guys go short pants, forbidden if pro. I have taken to wearing right and left hand gloves on the course, but not at covered practice range.

Sunscreen is needed on exposed places, nose  and cheeks for me coz my hat has big wings which cover my neck.  I use a roller ball sunscreen from Australia which means no need to touch with fingers the product and no grease on hands.  SPF, Sun Protection Factor, 50 for me.; UV A and B coverage.

Yeah, i'm serious.  Skin cancer is deadly. And i can tell you firsthand that serious sunburn is horribly painful.

[Fourputt]

Just on a side note, if you are going to go with sunscreen find one that has UVA and UVB protection. For years sunscreen only protected against UVB, but test have shown UVA is what causes DNA damage to the skin.

I use SPF 50 sunscreen with both, I haven't burned yet this year. It last me a good 9 holes of golf.

A wide brim hat instead of a simple baseball cap helps immensely too.  Protects from more angles.  When I go out on the boat here in the islands, I use sunscreen and a good hat.

Tilley hats are rated high for UV protection.  They were designed for sailing.

[turtleback]

And do not let the use of sunscreen lull you into a false sense of security.  It is good, but not enough.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/278242.php

[newtogolf]

Great thread @Crim

Most of the damage I have done to my skin was as a kid when I did a lot of deep sea fishing with my dad.  We would be out in the sun from 6am - 8pm every weekend and never wore sunscreen.  It took a few 2nd degree sun burns to finally realize sun screen might be a good idea.

Now I always wear sun screen and get checked every six months to make sure nothing develops.