Dark-Skinned People Don’t Need Sunscreen?
Every day, we challenge ourselves with new questions. How did life start on Earth? What’s the meaning of life? Are ghosts real? While those questions are confusing on their own, none of them are as puzzling as do dark-skinned people need sunscreen? Believe it or not, our community has been wondering about it for years.
The data, however, about how those changes affect dark-skinned people hasn’t reached the general public. The lack of public knowledge has created an air of mystery around the subject, resulting in myths and sayings that we have passed down for generations. But the question remains:
Do we need to use sunscreen?
Although the answer is a resounding YES, there are a few things that make it a little more complicated than that.
A Harmful Myth: Having Dark Skin Makes You Immune to Sunburns
We’re sure you’ve heard this before: how your dark skin makes you immune to sunburns. While it’s true that the higher pigment levels that make your skin look dark help protect against sunlight, they don’t necessarily make you immune to it.
Don’t believe us? The research backs it up.
Back in 2010, a survey in the United States showed that 13% of black women and 9% of black men reported getting at least one sunburn in the last 12 months. This trend continued until 2015, when it was last reported.
We assure you that the sun doesn’t discriminate. It burns all types of skin equally; including those that are melanin-rich like yours.
Even the dark-skinned people are not 100% protected from the sun. You can experience sunburn that’s tender, swollen, painful and due to the level of exposure can lead to blistering or darkening of the skin . If you excessively expose your skin to the sun, you can suffer from diffuse hyperpigmentation and even show visible signs of aging early on.
These two conditions pose their challenges and affect us in different ways, but they’re still not the worst things that can happen to you. Lesions like sunburns and other skin conditions caused by excessive sun exposure are also linked to skin cancer.
Wait, I Thought My Dark Skin Also Made Me Immune to Skin Cancer!? As lovely as it would be to be immune to this condition, having dark skin doesn’t make you resistant to skin cancer. Anyone, regardless of skin color, can get skin cancer. Cancer-resistant skin is nothing but a myth that has been perpetuated throughout the years. At a surface level, research sometimes aids that belief: Studies such as these showed a lower incidence of skin cancer among Hispanic and Black people between the years 1990 and 2004.
Out of 41,072 cases of melanoma, the study reported 1148 for Hispanics and 254 for African Americans. To the average person, these stats would indicate that those with dark skin are far less likely to get cancer; but that’s not the case. The research only shows that skin cancer diagnosis is less prevalent in the Black and Hispanic communities.
Be Careful!
Professionals in the field of medicine have shown that although skin cancer is uncommon in people of color, it’s likely to get diagnosed at a more advanced stage.
Unfortunately, a late diagnosis can only mean one thing – higher mortality rates. For that reason, it’s important to dispel the myths surrounding dark skin and sun immunity, as those could be making people less wary about their potential to develop harmful skin conditions.
But where did the Myth Come from?
It’s probably easier to ask who did not perpetuate the myth rather than who did. Here are some things you’ve probably heard from the people around you before:
- Good ol’ adages like “black don’t crack”
- Melanin is nature’s sunscreen
- To get a tan at the beach, you better take oil with you
- Hahaha, sunscreen!?
These are just some of the things we usually hear in our community. In many cases, they condition us into thinking that we don’t need to care for our skin when, in fact, this couldn’t be more wrong. However, our community isn’t the only one at fault. Members of the medical community have played along with this way of thinking for years. To this day, many physicians believe that black or dark skinned people don’t need sunscreen.
A study in 2014 reported that for every 100,000 black patient visits, only 26 of them were prescribed sunscreen. Compared to the number of prescriptions received by white people, doctors prescribed black people sunscreen nearly ten times less.
Is it Neglect or Ignorance?
While we could assume these statistics are the result of shameless neglect, the reality is that the medical field rarely dives into the effects the sun has on the dark skin people. Therefore, they don’t know what to look for when it comes to skin conditions in people of color.
A 2011 survey revealed that 47% of dermatologists and dermatology residents reported that their medical training hadn’t trained them enough to treat and identify skin conditions on people of color. If there’s one thing we know that could lead both patients and physicians to believe that people of color are immune to sun-related skin conditions, it is a general lack of knowledge about the subject.
Luckily, we’re here to tell you that sun immunity IS NOT real. But wait, if we are not immune, what are we?
Resilient, Not Immune:
Resilience is a word that perfectly defines how our beautiful, darker skin fares against the sun. Skin cancer risk varies by skin type. So much so that there’s a skin type classification system that shows how sensitive to the sun certain types of skin are, compared to others.
The Fitzpatrick Skin Type Classification System:
- Skin type I: Always burns, never tans, sensitive to ultraviolet exposure
- Skin type II: Burns easily, tans minimally
- Skin type III: Burns moderately, tans gradually to light brown
- Skin type IV: Burns minimally, always tans well to moderately brown
- Skin type V: Rarely burns, tans profusely to dark
- Skin type VI: Never burns, deeply pigmented, least sensitive
Skin types IV, V, and VI are the ones that best represent our skin color. They are also the ones that contain the most melanin.
Melanin? What is that?
Melanin is a natural skin pigment primarily responsible for skin color. It’s produced by cells in our skin called melanocytes. Our bodies produce melanin to protect us from the sun. All people, regardless of color, have roughly the same number of melanocytes in their skin. Studies show that variations of both size and distribution of melanosomes are what’s responsible for darker skin. Melanosomes are the organ structures in melanocytes that produce the melanin pigment.
So, Does My Melanin-Rich Skin Protect Me from the Sun?
Yes. People with skin types IV, V, and VI can withstand the ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun better than individuals that have a lighter complexion. No doubt, we burn and feel less than those that have other skin types. No Burning and No Sensitivity Sounds Pretty Close to ‘Immunity’ to Me!
IT ISN’T. A study found that even though UV rays are five times less potent against black skin thanks to melanin, the latter doesn’t offer significant protection to the basal cells against UV radiation. In other words, not seeing changes in your skin at a surface level doesn’t mean that your skin is safe from the sun. Your dark skin is just as sensitive to radiation as any other type of skin.
I can’t stress this enough: Take care of your skin. There isn’t such a thing as sun immunity.
Skin Cancer in Skin of Color
Most frequently diagnosed skin cancers in African Americans:
1. Squamous Cell Cancer
It’s a form of skin cancer that beings in squamous cells. These are the thin, flat cells that make up the outermost layer of the skin: the epidermis. Squamous Cell Cancer is the most common skin malignancy among African Americans, and it tends to occur in sun exposed body areas.
2. Basal Cell Carcinoma
This is another type of skin cancer. It begins in the basal cells. These cells have just one job: producing new skin cells as the old ones die off. Basal cell carcinoma is the second most common skin cancer in African Americans, and it primarily affects people who spend a lot of time in the sun.
3. Melanoma
Remember melanocytes? Well, turns out those cells can get cancer too. Melanoma is also another type of skin cancer linked to UV radiation from the sun. Malignant melanoma accounts for 75% of all skin cancer deaths. It’s a rare skin condition in African Americans, but it has a worse prognosis for ‘people of color’ than for Caucasians. You can also get melanoma on the parts of your body that contain less melanin, just like Jamaican singer-songwriter Bob Marley was diagnosed with when such a lesion was found under his toenail. It’s a condition called acral lentiginous melanoma, and it commonly grows on the palms of your hands, on the soles of your feet and around your nails. These Skin Cancers Have Something in Common. If you’ve been paying attention, you must have noticed these three types of skin cancer have something in common:
All of these skin cancers, without exception, can be the result of regularly exposing unprotected skin to UV radiation from the sun.
Dark-Skinned People NEED Sunscreen
Sun protection goes a long way to prevent you from developing life-threatening skin conditions. In a world where just five sunburns can increase your risk of getting skin cancer, it’s best to take measures that’ll rid you of that concern. By now, we’ve learned that exposing your unprotected skin to the sun can result or potentially result in:
- Uncomfortable sunburns
- Aging of our skin
- Tanning, Dark Spots and Hyperpigmentation
- Skin cancer
You can decrease and minimize the effects of UV exposure with the use of sunscreen. By increasing your skin’s natural skin protection factor (SPF), sunscreen serves as a protective layer for your skin.
Dark Skin Has a Natural Skin Protection Factor?
Yes. African Americans have an SPF of up to 13 thanks to melanin, filtering twice as much UV radiation compared to people with a fair complexion.
However, that’s not enough.
The American Academy of Dermatology recommends using sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30, which blocks 97% of the UV rays from the sun. But Some Protection Could Be Enough Protection, Right? NO. There is a vast difference between an SPF of up to 13 and an SPF of 30. No matter how high the SPF in sunscreen is, it can’t block 100% of the sun’s UV rays. Keeping this in mind, there’s no way you can prevent skin conditions with just an SPF of 13 or less.
Are There Any Other Ways to Protect My Skin?
Besides not exposing yourself to the sun sans sunscreen, there are other ways you can protect the health of your skin long-term. They include the following:
- Seek shade when you’re out, especially during the hours where the sun rays are the strongest. This is typically the middle of the day between the hours of 10am and 2pm.
- Avoid tanning beds. They emit UV rays, which are not healthy for your skin
- Wear protective clothing. If you’re out and about, pair your sunscreen with dark clothing. It helps filter out UV rays even further
- Check your skin regularly to ensure there aren’t any new, strange growths. It’ll also help you spot changes in existing moles, freckles, and others
- Visit your doctor if you have any concern about existing or new skin findings.
Be Responsible For the Health of Your Skin!
No matter what misinformation is out there, you alone are responsible for the health of your skin. Remember that sunscreen matters. No More Myths: Learn How to Treat Your Skin Better With NubianDoc. Here at NubianDoc, we love every quality that our melanin-rich skin has to offer. >For that reason, we have created a platform to help our community. It’s our responsibility, as much as yours, to turn the statistics concerning dark skin health around.
Understand the value of beautiful, youthful and healthy skin with NubianDoc
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What is Melanin?
Melanin is a natural skin pigment primarily responsible for skin color. It’s produced by cells in our skin called melanocytes. Our bodies produce melanin to protect us from the sun. All people, regardless of color, have roughly the same number of melanocytes in their skin.
Does my Melanin-Rich Skin protect me from the Sun?
Yes. People with skin types IV, V, and VI can withstand the ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun better than individuals that have a lighter complexion. No doubt, we burn and feel less than those that have other skin types. No Burning and No Sensitivity Sounds Pretty Close to ‘Immunity’ to Me!
Dark Skin has a Natural Skin Protection Factor?
Yes. African Americans have an SPF of up to 13 thanks to melanin, filtering twice as much UV radiation compared to people with a fair complexion.