but, on the contrary, encourages it by amplifying UVA absorption. This makes sunscreens far more
dangerous than sunlight could ever be.
The question remains: Can sunscreens that are made to block out both UVA and UVB radiation solve
this problem? Research has shown that they don’t prevent skin cancer either. First, the skin still has to
deal with the acid assault that occurs when applying the lotion. Second, shutting out UVAs and UVBs
deprives the body of the most important rays of the sun responsible for maintaining proper immunity and
numerous essential processes. The body requires UVB, for example, for the synthesis of vitamin D,
without which we cannot survive. Is it surprising, then, to find that there are many people suffering from
skin cancer today who have had either very little or no exposure to sunlight?
Deficient Sunlight – A Death Trap
It has been known for several decades that those living mostly in the outdoors, at high altitudes, or
near the equator, have the lowest incidence of skin cancers. And as the evidence suggests, those who work
under artificial lighting have the highest incidence of skin cancers. In a study conducted on U.S. Navy
personnel between 1974 and 1984, researchers found a higher incidence of skin cancers among sailors
who had indoor jobs than those working outside. Those working both indoors and outdoors showed the
most protection, with a rate 24 percent below the U.S. national average. Since none of the sailors spent
their entire day outside, it could not be determined whether being outside all day would offer the highest
degree of protection.
It is interesting to note that some of the hottest places in the U.S., such as Phoenix, Arizona, have the
highest rates of skin cancers, but not because residents of Phoenix overly expose their skin to the sun..
The extreme heat throughout much of the year keeps most people indoors during the day. In addition, the
dry, hot air while outside, and the dry, cold air produced by air conditioners inside the home, office
building, and car quickly removes any moisture from the skin, thereby leaving the skin with very little
natural protection against the elements, fungi, and bacteria. Even during the night, because of constant air-
conditioning, the skin is rarely able to breathe natural, moist air. The lack of moisture in the skin greatly
reduces its ability to remove harmful waste products from the connective tissues and other parts of the
body. In addition, the dehydrated skin readily absorbs the harmful chemicals contained in most
moisturizers and sunscreen lotions, both of which are used more frequently in hot, dry places such as
Phoenix. All this can lead to increasingly weak and damaged skin cells, which in many cases become
cancerous.
The average city-dwelling American spends twenty-two hours a day indoors, most of that time
beneath and around artificial light. Children, too, are increasingly spending less time outside in nature,
and more of their time indoors at home, in school, on the computer, and in front of the television set.
During the winter season, most of the working population in the cities never even sees daylight, except
through windows that reflect UV light. Incandescent light has a narrow band compared to sunlight, and
exposure to it is known to weaken one's natural immunity. (A Russian study showed that workers who
were exposed to UV light during working hours suffered 50 percent fewer colds.) A weak immune system
cannot properly defend itself against disease, and that includes skin cancer!
Researcher Dr. Helen Shaw and her team conducted a melanoma study at the London School of
Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and at the Sydney Melanoma Clinic in Sydney Hospital. They found that
office workers had twice the incidence of the deadly cancer as people who worked outdoors. The results
of the study were published in 1982 by the British medical journal Lancet. Dr. Shaw proved that those
who spent most of their time exposed to natural sunlight had by far the lowest risk of developing skin
cancer. In sharp contrast to those living or working outdoors, office workers who were exposed to