Girl, the sun said she’s too lit to discriminate on skin complexion, so yes, your melanated self needs sunscreen too!!
About ten years ago on a break from my graduate studies, my friends came to visit me in Orlando, Florida. We enjoyed the youthful ignorance of lounging in the sun and playing in the pool for hours without sunscreen. I was blissfully ignorant of the sisters Ultra, Violet and their brother Ray as my melanin began to toast. We finally peeled ourselves out of the pool to take showers and enjoy the nightlife.
Every trickle of water from the shower faucet felt like my face was being used as target practice for a dart-thrower. My nose and cheeks were on fire!!! I hadn’t been able to make the correlation of my sensitive face and being in the sun for hours without sunscreen until I called my mom, who was a Registered Nurse, to whine about what I was experiencing. My mom simply asked me “Jasmyne, were you wearing sunscreen”? , I replied “Mama, I’m dark, what do I need that for “? To which my mom informed me that Black, even dark skinned people needed protection from the sun too. Black people are not immune to the dangers of the sun. We need sunscreen too.
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Let me give you two examples of why wearing sunscreen, if you’re black or brown, is important.
1. Health
Melanoma has been thought of as “an ole white folks disease.” While deeper hue skin can offer more protection from the sun than lighter skin, our darker skin isn’t resistant to the damage that the sun can cause. If detected early melanoma has a 96% cure rate however because of a late diagnosis more African American die of this disease than European Americans even though the disease is more prevalent in Caucasians.
2. Beauty
If you’re not convinced about the health risk and why black people need sunscreen too, let’s talk about beauty and how not wearing sunscreen is negatively impacting your flawless beauty goals. GIRL, THE SUN IS MAKING YOUR DARK SPOTS DARKER. Post-inflammatory hyper pigmentation is what happens when your melanin cells, metaphorically speaking, pull a double shift and work overtime, making the area of trauma darker. The sun emits ultraviolet radiation, which causes your skin to produce more melanin. The result of you going out in the sun and not wearing any sun protection products means that all of your skin is getting toasty…. including those dark spots you’re trying to get rid of.
Here’s a sunscreen product scientifically manufactured for melanin skin that won’t leave that white caste: DEW THE MOST Sheer Moisturizer SPF 30 Broad Spectrum Sunscreen by Mele.
MELE
Protect your glow. As always, be kind, be safe and stay beautiful!!!
