Afraid of the Sun? Try Protective Foods…
According to Dr. Jonathan Wright’s Nutrition & Healing Newsletter¹, (Vol. 17, Issue 3) it is not where you live or how much sun you get but what you eat that makes the most difference for protecting us against UV-related skin damage. Summer time foods in particular are aging and cancer preventatives. Another way to put that is if you want the very best skin protection stay on a Mediterranean diet. Think seafood, olives, olive oil, garlic, colorful fresh vegetables, bright greens such as spinach and kale, grapes, citrus and other fruits. And don’t forget to use plenty of fresh herbs such as rosemary, thyme, sage and oregano.
What nutrients are most important? Along with vitamin A, C, D, E, and B complex remember to use other antioxidant supplements such as green tea, beta carotene, lycopene, and lutein. One might wonder how to get these in without being a walking supplement cabinet. It’s easy really; go to your garden or the local market. Notice what’s in plentiful supply. Those plump and juicy tomatoes just waiting to be made into a fresh sauce are a bountiful supply of lycopene. Add zucchini to that dish and you’ve created a lutein supply as well. By putting your sauce over a bed of kale or spinach you’ve added a rich supply of beta-carotene and additional lutein. If you began your cooking adventure with olive oil and garlic even better as these too protect against skin cancers. Even your glass of red wine provides polyphenols, known to protect against cancer induced UV-radiation.
For a mid-day pick-me-up try green or black tea with a little citrus peel over ice. Simply put three bags of tea in a ½ gal. jug of water and set it in the sun. Studies have shown an association between higher tea consumption and lower levels of basal and squamous cell cancers. Adding citrus peel appears to increase that protection.
According to research by Dr. Wright; in an article written by Dr. Niva Shapira in the journal Nutrition Reviews, she notes how a group of researchers found that by taking a lycopene supplement while being exposed to the sun, it actually “reduced the count of sunburned cells by 83% over those who did not take the lycopene.” Pondering this statistic one might think even if this percentage were 40 or 50% it is still a significant benefit.
So what foods might increase the effect of sun damage? Alcohol for one. In general alcohol weakens your immune system, stresses your liver and reduces your vitamin load. Dairy products and red meat also increase susceptibility. However what we mainly want to focus on is a favorable omega 3-6 fatty acid ratio. Grass fed, free-range animals have higher omega 3’s than their grain fed counterpart. Taking fish oil also supplies beneficial omega-3 fatty acids. While fish oil and olive oil support your body’s assimilation of healthy sunlight other oils such as vegetable oils high in omega 6 fatty acids increase your chances of DNA damage as well as tumor growth.
If I am already burned fish oils containing omega-3 fatty acids are one way to lessen the symptoms of sunburn. Drinking water hourly; eating foods such as watermelon, cucumbers, honeydew, celery, squash, peaches, zucchini, and apples are all useful for removing trapped heat and cooling down the body. Of course, avoiding foods that promote heat is equally important such as alcohol, coffee, barbecued, spicy, and deep-fried foods. Accordingly Dr. Maoshing Ni in Secrets of Self-Healing, reminds us that certain drugs make our skin more susceptible to sunburn as well. Drugs such as “tetracycline, thiazide diuretics, anti-anxiety medications… and NSAID’s.”²
Information such as this helps me assist my body’s need for sunlight while continuing to protect myself from dangerous sunscreens. In fact I stopped using sunscreen years ago when I noticed skin-cancer risks appeared to be increasing at the same time sunscreen use was growing. I now prefer to take vitamins, eat lots of healthy sun protecting foods and use a combination of aloe vera and coconut oil to protect my skin topically. I also keep a light weight, long sleeve shirt handy.
So, does using sunscreens increase your chances of skin cancer? Who knows? Maybe. The unregulated cosmetic industry has been known to use innumerable carcinogenic ingredients. You may wish to check out the website of the Environmental Working Group³ for more up to date information regarding the few sunscreens they deem safe.
1. See www.wrightnewsletter.com
2. Dr. Maoshing Ni, Secrets of Self-Healing, Penguin Group, NY, NY. pg.485
3. See http://www.environmentalworkinggroup.com/
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