THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : The thought of spending a few minutes outdoors under the sun, will surely make most people break out into a sweat. As the scorching sun beats down on hapless beings, it results in skin allergies.Doctors say that there has been an increasing incidence of skin allergies and irritations caused due to sun exposure. As the temperatures have soared during the past few years and the state sees heatwave like conditions even during winter months, the situation seems to only worsen.
Skin reactions to the sun can be classified as normal and abnormal. Normal reactions include sunburn, tanning and hyperplasia (skin thickening) and photoaging. Sunburn is a condition that leaves the skin red, painful and hot to touch, it occurs after continuous exposure to the sun. The condition called sebaceous hyperplasia mostly materialises as small bumps on the face. While photoaging causes premature symptoms of aging on skin such as wrinkles.
The abnormal responses are polymorphic light eruptions, solar urticaria and actinic dermatitis. Polymorphic light eruptions are rashes caused due to sun exposure by people with sunlight sensitivity. Resulting rashes can be in the form of bumps or raised patches of red skin. While solar urticaria is a rare condition that causes allergy to ultraviolet light and is prevalent in individuals with sustained high UV exposure. Actinic dermatitis is the condition where the skin becomes inflamed due to sunlight, with symptoms such as burning, itching and pain near the affected area.
“Polymorphic light eruption and sunburn are the most common sun allergies that have been most noticed since the past two years. Their incidence is increasing due to exposure to UVA and UVB rays,” said M M Mohemmed Faizal, dermatologist at a city hospital.“It is recommended to wear long sleeved dresses in cotton while spending time outdoors. Chemical barriers such as sunscrens must be applied every three to four hours for optimal protection,” he added.