SPF and Skin Cancer News for Dark Skin

by Chioma Nnadi, Vogue

As a woman of mixed race, my skin tone sits exactly between my father's chestnut-brown coloring and my mother's pale-white complexion-a shade my Italian grandfather used to call café au lait. While my freckly cousins were slathered in sunblock as children, I spent my days happily running around the garden without so much as a sun hat for coverage. So last year, when my dermatologist asked me if I'd ever had a skin check, I threw her a befuddled look. After all, I'd long reformed my reckless childhood ways and always wore sunscreen as an adult-at least where summer vacations were concerned. It wasn't until a friend spotted an unusually dark mole on my left index finger at dinner one night that I started to reconsider my doctor's orders. Had I been too dismissive? Was it even remotely possible that I was a candidate for skin cancer?

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According to new research from L'Oréal, the answer is yes. The fact is, exposure to sunlight induces DNA damage in all skin types-regardless of ethnic origin-and new skin-cancer statistics are frightening: Incidences of melanoma amongst people of color are on the rise, and in the case of Hispanic women, the rate of increase is particularly high. "There's an overriding perception that only Caucasian people can get skin cancer, and that's not true," says Mona Gohara, M.D. assistant professor of dermatology at Yale, who is of Egyptian origin herself. "When people of color do get it, it's generally more deadly because it's usually diagnosed at a later stage."

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She stresses the importance of annual mole checks at your dermatologist's office, as well as monthly self-exams (with special attention paid to the melanoma-prone areas like the palms of the hands, soles of the feet, nails, and scalp). Preventative measures are also key. If the minimum daily recommended protection is SPF 30, then clearly sunscreen should be a part of everyone's skin care regimen. And while slathering on a broad-spectrum formula for a day at the beach is essential, cumulative damage adds up, too. As Gohara points out, the sun's harmful rays can filter through car and office windows, and there is evidence to suggest that artificial light worsens dark spots, which are especially problematic for women of color (who are more susceptible to hyperpigmentation). In fact, scientific research shows that even the darkest skins only have an inherent SPF of about 13.4 versus 3.4 in those on the flip end of the spectrum.

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Gohara recommends a sheer, broad-spectrum formula like La Roche-Posay's Anthelios 50 Mineral Tinted Ultra Light Sunscreen Fluid in SPF 50 because it won't leave behind the ashy residue of other titanium-based sunscreens. "SPF 30 or higher," she says. "It should be part of everyone's regime. Every day, any time of the year."

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