Summer 2016 Newsletter

The sun’s UV radiation is both a major cause of skin cancer and the best natural source of vitamin D. The risk of skin cancer from too much sun exposure needs to be balanced with maintaining adequate vit- amin D levels. Vitamin D deficiency in Aus- tralia has also greatly increased, since sunblock also reduces vitamin D produc- tion in the skin. Although sunscreens could almost entirely block the solar- induced production of cutaneous pre- vitamin D3 on theoretical grounds or if ad- ministered under strictly controlled condi- tions, in practice they have not been shown to do so. This is mainly due to in- adequacies in their application to the skin and because users of sunscreen may also expose themselves to more sun than non- users.