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Question
17 Dec 2002
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Can one's skin over years become more sensitive towards sunburn ?
Hi Doc.
I'm a 44 year old male who spent many hours of my youth shirtless in the sun.
Recently , when I go to the beach , even factor 30 lotion does not prevent blisters from appearing on my shoulders and back. This in turn takes up to 10 days to "heal", which healing process includes many nights of irritating itching and scratching.
Can one's skin become less effective in protecting itself from the sun -- why can't I just tan like I used to in my youth ?
Rgds.
I'm a 44 year old male who spent many hours of my youth shirtless in the sun.
Recently , when I go to the beach , even factor 30 lotion does not prevent blisters from appearing on my shoulders and back. This in turn takes up to 10 days to "heal", which healing process includes many nights of irritating itching and scratching.
Can one's skin become less effective in protecting itself from the sun -- why can't I just tan like I used to in my youth ?
Rgds.
CyberDoc
Itchy, the more you expose your skin to the sun the more melanin it makes and the more resistant it becomes. Unfortunately this only works up to a certain point. From there onwards the sun just causes damage to the skin and this of course compromises the skins ability to protect itself. The older you get the more damage is done and the easier it becomes for the sun to do damage. The best would be to stay out of the sun and avoid any further damage. Good luck.
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