Sun safety for you and your patients

Being a pale-skinned, blue-eyed Floridian is a lot of work if I don’t want to end up with skin cancer like so many others, but it is completely worth the effort. Just because you are not from Florida, does not mean that you don’t need to protect your skin as well. The sun knows no state boundaries, and it is often the cumulative exposure to UV light over many years, which leads to skin cancer, not to mention collagen destruction and that gross leathery look.

Not only am I urging you to take care of yourself, but also your patient’s dermatology needs. Don’t just look in their mouth, but examine the entire head and neck of your patient. Look for irregular or abnormal lesions that match the ABCDE’s of Melanoma. The June 2012 issue of The Academy of General Dentistry’s magazine Impact had a feature article on this very topic, “Recognizing Skin Lesions and Knowing When to Refer Your Patients”. A student membership is only $16, and you gain a world of information through their publications to supplement the great info we already get from ASDA.

Skin Saving Tips:

• Never leave the house without applying  moisturizer with minimum SPF 30 to your face and neck area. Every morning I use For Goodness Face Antioxidant Skin Moisturizing Lotion SPF 30 from Mark.
• Buy a lipbalm with SPF in it. Keep it handy in your scrub pocket for those days when you leave the dental school building to eat lunch outside. Sun related lesions are more common on the lower lip. I use Burt’s Bees Sun Protecting Lipbalm SPF 8.
• Is your dental school parking lot in the middle of nowhere, and you make quite the trek on foot to actually arrive at your dental school? Apply lotion with SPF in the mornings. All those morning and afternoon walks of sun exposure can really add up to equal a weird scrub tan of sorts, depending on your skin type. I prefer Aveeno Daily Moisturizing Lotion with Sunscreen SPF 15.
• Drink caffeinated coffee! A new study found that people who drink moderate amounts of caffeinated coffee have a decreased risk of basal cell carcinoma.

~Carolyn A. Norton, Florida ’14, Contributing Editor