If you’re interested in developing a tan from an indoor tanning bed, you better understanding the dangers involved.

Tanning beds can be a quick and convenient way to bronze your skin, but it is not without side effects.

Continuous use of tanning beds have proven to cause burns, suppression of immune systems, wrinkles, leathery skin, damage to the cornea, cosmetic photosensitivity, premature aging and a much higher risk of developing melanoma cancer.

A recent study in Australia has proven that UVA rays are even more of a cancer danger than previously thought. The World Health Organisation says sunbeds are as big a cancer threat as smoking and asbestos.

Great news to the natural skin care world. New reports have indicated that scientists have found a way to convert soybean oil into a sunscreen that is both non-toxic and anti-aging. Presented by Joseph Lazlo, PhD to the American Chemical Society, it showed how ferulic acid can bring about this conversion. Both UV-A and UV-B lights are absorbed by such a sunscreen.

This means that in the near future, this natural soybean sunscreen agent could replace petroleum-derived ingredients in a variety of personal-care products.

Not only is the new bio-sunscreen more environmentally friendly and kinder to your skin, but it may also be more effective.

There has been many articles written in this blog regarding the concerns of chemical UV absorbers used in sunscreen. But with summer approaching, I’ve recently been getting a constant stream of questions regarding a particular UV absorber ingredient used and concerns regarding the dangers it poses to one’s health.

The toxic ingredient in question is ‘oxybenzone‘. Oxybenzone’s function works as a UV absorber, ‘filtering’ ultra violet light on the surface of the skin by converting it from light to heat. The problem with this ingredient is the harmful free radical it produces during the (UV absorption) process. If light is converted to heat in the basal layers of the skin, damage to growing cells is very likely.

We’ve written plenty articles on the importance of sun protection on this blog, and I’m sure with the countless advertising campaigns from the cancer council, most of you are well aware of the need to keep your skin protected from the sun’s harmful UV rays.

But sh** happens – You forget to put on sunscreen before your son’s soccer game. You fall asleep at the beach. You forgot to reapply your sunscreen at an all day barbeque. A cloudy rainy day suddenly turns into a scorching sunny day…………………. By the time you get home from your activities, you are left looking like a carrot.

It’s no surprise that Soleo Organics Sunscreen has once again been rated the safest most effective sunscreen by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), and awarded the 2009 Product Merit Award by the Nutrition Business Journal.

The Soleo Sunscreen has come a long way. In 1999, creator ‘Leo Fung’ began searching for a safe chemical free sunscreen for his mother which was being treated with skin cancer. The scorching Australian sun is not kind to one’s fragile skin.

Leo looked long and hard but failed in his quest to find a sunscreen that was natural and organic in the market. He decided if he can’t find one, with his expertise and knowledge in naturopathy, he can surely develop his own natural organic sunscreen. Along with the help of Distributing Company ‘Skin Elements’, Soleo Organics finally saw the light of day in the Australian market in 2003.

At this day and age, we tend to be well educated with the importance of sun protection and the damages it does to your skin.

But when it comes to sun protection for the lips, we often turn a blind eye. Lips are actually more vulnerable to sun damage, as the skin layer protecting it is very thin and its inability to produce enough melanin (skin pigments), means that it is incapable of blocking out the damaging effects of UVA and UVB rays alone. Help is needed. Daily lip care is important to keep your lips from cracking, burning, chapping and cold sores.

It’s SPRING! The weather is beginning to warm up and in 3 months time, we”ll be heading into the scorching Australian summer. Sadly, Australia has the highest rate of skin cancer in the world. It’s frightening to see that more than 430,000 Australians are treated for skin cancers every year, with around 1600 deaths from melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer.

We all need to be extra vigilant with protecting our skin from the sun when participating in outdoor activities. This includes wearing protective clothing, slapping on a hat and applying the right sunscreen. When shopping for a sunscreen, we are normally faced with selecting between:

Statistical research has revealed that skin cancer rates in Australia are the highest in the world. The argument can be made that the level of UV light today is higher than it was 50 or 100 years ago due to a reduction of the ozone layer. Or you can blame it on environmental factors such as elevation, latitude, and cloud cover. Or better still, you can even make the argument that people with fair skin, with a northern European heritage appear to be most susceptible for sun burns and skin cancers.

All are valid arguments, but there is still no denying the fact that the highest incidences of skin cancer actually occur in countries where the use of chemical sunscreens containing benzophenone and oxybenzone and PABA have been promoted the most. The irony is that the chemical sunscreen industry makes money by selling sunscreen lotion products which is promoted to prevent skin cancer, but the ingredients used actually contain cancer-causing chemicals.