Summer is slowly creeping up on us and when it does sunscreen sales will spike. But don’t just think this skin protectant is only good for days when you’re out hiking or picnicking in the park on sunny days. It’s also important to wear sunscreen when taking long road trips. Yes, you’re in the car, but that doesn’t mean you’re entirely sheltered from harmful UVA and UVB rays.
Published by The New England Journal of Medicine, this image reveals the effects that long-term sun exposure had on a man who drove trucks for 28 years. One can clearly see that the side of his face most exposed to the sun suffered more noticeable damage than the side facing away from the sun. While this damage won’t be as pronounced for most drivers, the same thing is happening to your skin to a lesser degree.
Professor and Chairman of Saint Louis University's dermatology department, Dr. Scott W. Fosko, conducted a study which found that more people develop skin cancer on the left side of their bodies (the side most exposed to sun when driving) - 52.6 percent versus the right side of the body at 47.4 percent. Even more significantly, in 74 percent of the left-side cases, malignant melanoma had occurred, while the right side saw only 26 percent malignant melanoma.
Even if you’re not driving a convertible, it’s important to wear sunscreen on long trips, and preferably short ones too considering that we live in a region with plenty of summer sunshine. While car windows block out sunrays to a certain degree, Dr. Fosko suggests investing in a window film that can block the majority of sunrays and says to lather on the sunscreen over summer months.
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