Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Shamrocks and Sunscreen

On the 17th millions of Americans will don the color green, raise a pint of Guinness, and pretend to have Irish roots. If, however, you are lucky enough to be kissed this St Patrick’s Day for truly being Irish then there’s a good chance you have red hair. There are a lot of red haired stereotypes, but as far as skin goes redheads and others of Celtic descent are more likely to burn in the sun, have a higher risk of skin cancer, and are more prone to wrinkling with age.

Redheads tend to have sensitive skin. If you’ve wondered why everything seems to irritate your skin it’s because your skin is actually thinner than people with other coloring. Meaning your nerves and blood vessels are closer to the outermost layer of skin. To protect your skin avoid extreme temperatures, products with alcohol and fragrances, and prolonged sun exposure. The Skin Cancer Foundation advises pale-skin types to use a 30 SPF or higher sun screen, wear sun protective clothing, and to do a skin check every month for spots that may indicate cancer.

While all this might not seem very lucky with a careful skincare routine and monitoring, you can have beautiful, healthy skin. And with only about 2% of the US sharing your coloring naturally celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and your unique look.

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