Guest Post: Here’s How You Can ‘Beat The Burn’ In Malta This Summer
Beat the Burn is a campaign coordinated by members of the Malta Medical Students Association every summer, which aims at raising awareness about the dangers of excessive sun exposure and ways in which we can combat the harmful effects of UV rays.
Severe sunburns, blisters, premature ageing and even skin cancer – these are just some of the dangers that come with excessive sun exposure. On the other hand, exposure to an adequate amount of UV rays provides various advantages such as boosting the body’s Vitamin D supply, uplifting one’s mood and helping to reduce stress.
1. Ultraviolet emissions from the sun come in three types; UV A, UV B, UV C
UV C is the weakest emission. Due to its short wavelength it never reaches the Earth’s surface and so is not considered a risk factor for skin cancer.
What we should be worried about are UV A and UV B rays. These have longer wavelengths that manage to reach our skin, causing the harmful effects we are familiar with.
UV B damages skin cells and causes DNA mutations which may eventually result in melanomas as well as other skin cancers.
UV A has the longest wavelength of the bunch which allows for deeper skin penetration. As a result, UVA is associated with premature skin ageing and wrinkling.
Take home message: When purchasing your next sunblock, make sure it provides protection against both UV A and UV B rays. This information is usually printed on the bottle itself.
The Maltese sun can beat down hard, be it on the beach or in the streets
2. How does sunlight in Malta actually affect you?
The Maltese are more at risk of skin cancer because we have a high UV index for several months of the year, especially during the summer months. Thus, our aim is to educate about the importance of protecting ourselves from the sun.
Melanoma is a skin cancer which brings with it a high risk of death. Risk factors for this type of cancer include sun exposure, an increasing number of moles or atypical moles on the skin, fair skin and family history of melanoma.
In Malta, a rise in invasive malignant melanoma has been observed, a trend which has also been noted amongst the white populations worldwide. This further drives us medical students to raise awareness to people of all ages to ensure that they are protected against the dangerous UV rays of the sun.
3. So, what should I do to protect myself from the sun?
There are various ways to protect yourself from the sun. These include:
– Staying Hydrated
One must not underestimate the importance of drinking water constantly. Hydration is always important, but especially in hot and humid weather since we lose a lot of our body fluids through sweat.
– Appropriate clothing
Some clothing is certified to offer protection against UV. Hats must also be worn to protect the face and the scalp and sunglasses to protect the eyes which are very sensitive, but one must ensure that the sunglasses offer UV protection.
– Applying sunscreen
It is important to apply sunscreen more than once and to also cover areas which cannot be reached easily independently. Sunscreens are assigned an SPF (Sunscreen Protection Factor) which shows how well it blocks the UV rays. Higher numbers mean more protection. One must also stress the fact that sunscreen wears off and thus reapplication is important,
4. Want to find out more? Come find us at your local beaches
As a part of this year’s Beat the Burn campaign, the team of active members within MMSA is setting up outreach events on various beaches around the island in collaboration with Malta Tourism Authority and Bioderma as our sponsor.
Through these beach outreach events, we hope to further educate the public about our campaign. At these events, we will also be carrying out free health checks including blood glucose levels, blood pressure checks and Body Mass Index (BMI).
So, if you see us around, we encourage you to come to our tent and say hi! We can talk about any concerns you might have regarding sun safety and also give you a quick health check. As part of our campaign, we will also be going around summer school centres to educate children from a young age about the dangers of UV rays and how to beat the burn effectively.
Clara Ann Formosa and Pearl Vassallo are members of the Malta Medical Students Association
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