To Sunbathe or Not to Sunbathe on the island? That is the question.

Dermatology is now the highest earning medical profession. Hedge funds are buying up dermatology practices and putting targets/goals on procedures done daily so earnings multiples can be increased and the investments can be spun off.


Companies are making billions on sunscreens and everybody is convinced that you must slather on creams, ointments and liquids to protect ourselves from the 'evils' of the sun. Many people are walking around completely pale and look sickly. The reason they do is that they are not receiving any Vitamin D.


Growing up and all of my life, I just feel better in the sunlight. It is warm; grows our food and through photosynthesis provides nourishment to all living things. I think people just look more healthy with a little sunlight on them.


Marketers have us believing in supplements- Vitamin D and the list goes on and on. People are spending billions on these pills, liquids and tablets. Go to any pharmacy, Target, Walmart or GNC and see row upon row of these items for sale.


For years I have been telling my wife I just feel better lying in the sun. It is invigorating feeling the warmth delivered to my body each day. Data shows that light therapy helps with depression as well.


Every year I go to the dermatologist and get these lectures about having a wonderful suntan, as they charge me for removing as many little spots that they can charge to my health insurance company. I simply smile and continue enjoying the sun.


Don't get me wrong. Overdoing it with sun burns is a no no. People who burn or 'toast' themselves every season are asking for skin trouble. Some of you may know the data has been kept as quiet as possible showing that Vitamin D supplements do not work. The supplement companies have been suing stating this is falsified information. Studies are coming out that people who don't get tan and stay out of the sunlight actually have higher rates of melanoma, and other skin cancers as well as heart disease, diabetes and many other maladies.


We and all living things were designed to require sunlight on our bodies and structures. Trees do not get diseases from too much sun. Without sunlight, life as we know it would not exist. Anyway enough of my blathering- please read the article below published on January 10 of this year and please post your thoughts/reactions.

https://www.outsideonline.com/2380751/sunscreen-sun-exposure-skin-cancer-science

Our life expediency had been going up each year. Because of the opioid addiction crisis it has leveled off the past two years. Like you, I am not going to worry about spending time in the sun. I did not have much choice considering I had a landscape company for 35 years and have always enjoyed the outdoors; including the beach. Applying sun block is common sense. Starting out with shorter times and increasing makes sense also. Smoking, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, driving without a seatbelt and anger in general will cause health problems before being in the sun.

I'm with you Hawke. I have worked in construction since I was 14. Younger days, I worked all summer with shirt off. Thankfully, I have dark olive, Eastern European skin. I do not burn, but as the spring approaches, I sun in moderation. As they say, everything in moderation!
I live a clean, healthy, life. In order of your list of no no's. I do not smoke, I do not abuse alcohol, I do not abuse drugs, I always buckle my seat belt and demand others in my car as well, I avoid angry situations.
I attempt to make as many trips to St. Barths to enjoy Paradise as possible. Life is short and yes, I am going to die from something.

Sunbathe every day of vacation for about 6 hours a day. It’s when I’m the most relaxed. Luckily, my husband enjoys it just as much as I do and neither of us burn. I do wear a high spf on my face but that’s solely for anti aging purposes.

stbartshopper said:

Trees do not get diseases from too much sun. Without sunlight, life as we know it would not exist. Anyway enough of my blathering- please read the article below published on January 10 of this year and please post your thoughts/reactions.

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From Seed to Tree: The Functioning and Evolution of DNA Repair in Plants
With trees being considered in the context of the link of sun exposure to skin cancers associated with UV light causing DNA damage, formation of reactive oxygen species etc., you may find this article of particular interest.

Sunburn and sunscald in trees.
Also of potential interest, when thinking about sun damage and trees.

I'll spare you the pictures. I have been an avid outdoorsman my whole life. Snow skiing, water skiing, golf, tennis, hiking, mountain biking, and lots of beach time. I am now paying the price with my third basal cell carcinoma surgery. Mind you, this is not the deadly form, but having it on my face twice, is not a pleasant experience, and even with terrific surgeons, there is some scaring. For the last several years, we have applied full sun block, and stayed under our umbrella, for the most part, when on the beach. We're not going to give up our lifestyle, but there ARE consequences. You can get a lot of vitamin D in 15 minutes of sun exposure. And yes, I love the feel of the sun.

stbartshopper said:

Dermatology is now the highest earning medical profession. Hedge funds are buying up dermatology practices and putting targets/goals on procedures done daily so earnings multiples can be increased and the investments can be spun off.


Companies are making billions on sunscreens and everybody is convinced that you must slather on creams, ointments and liquids to protect ourselves from the 'evils' of the sun. Many people are walking around completely pale and look sickly. The reason they do is that they are not receiving any Vitamin D.


Growing up and all of my life, I just feel better in the sunlight. It is warm; grows our food and through photosynthesis provides nourishment to all living things. I think people just look more healthy with a little sunlight on them.


Marketers have us believing in supplements- Vitamin D and the list goes on and on. People are spending billions on these pills, liquids and tablets. Go to any pharmacy, Target, Walmart or GNC and see row upon row of these items for sale.


For years I have been telling my wife I just feel better lying in the sun. It is invigorating feeling the warmth delivered to my body each day. Data shows that light therapy helps with depression as well.


Every year I go to the dermatologist and get these lectures about having a wonderful suntan, as they charge me for removing as many little spots that they can charge to my health insurance company. I simply smile and continue enjoying the sun.


Don't get me wrong. Overdoing it with sun burns is a no no. People who burn or 'toast' themselves every season are asking for skin trouble. Some of you may know the data has been kept as quiet as possible showing that Vitamin D supplements do not work. The supplement companies have been suing stating this is falsified information. Studies are coming out that people who don't get tan and stay out of the sunlight actually have higher rates of melanoma, and other skin cancers as well as heart disease, diabetes and many other maladies.


We and all living things were designed to require sunlight on our bodies and structures. Trees do not get diseases from too much sun. Without sunlight, life as we know it would not exist. Anyway enough of my blathering- please read the article below published on January 10 of this year and please post your thoughts/reactions.

https://www.outsideonline.com/2380751/sunscreen-sun-exposure-skin-cancer-science

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As a physician, I find "as they charge me for removing as many little spots that they can charge to my health insurance company" offensive. If they can only charge for 6, I hope you never have 7. Of course, there are bad apples in every profession, but your implication is insulting to the field.

Thou protest to much. Do not think Hopper was trying to insult.

Hawke said:

Thou protest to much. Do not think Hopper was trying to insult.

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You are so right: and hedge fund interest in a medical specialty is very pertinent to skin care concerns.
PS: It’s “too,” not “to,” Shakespeare.

Nice to see you back Eric

andynap said:

Nice to see you back Eric

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Hey Andy
Just a brief cameo—back to lurking
Just learned of your recent loss: so sorry to hear
All my best

Thank you

Eric G said:

You are so right: and hedge fund interest in a medical specialty is very pertinent to skin care concerns.
PS: It’s “too,” not “to,” Shakespeare.

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Debated overnight if I should respond. Why not. I'm retired. A little spelling lesson for you. The word stirer is spelled with another r, as in stirrer. All you need to do is go back to your post on 10-8-2015. Thank you for your spelling lesson. Glad you also had the time to teach me.:up:

My Wife is or I should say was a sun worshiper. Last year some of the little spots on her face, that were talked about in earlier posts, turned out to be Melanoma cancer. We are lucky �� Stage 1a and Stage 0 for the two spots. The amount of flesh removed per spot is huge around the size of an American silver dollar but lucky for us that is the only treatment. We even had optional sentinel lymp node testing, we are good. But I am sure my Wife feels all the sun bathing without proper sun screen or burning all those times by accident not worth it. We are actually coming back to St Barts to rest and celebrate my 50th birthday in April. Planning the trip now and already it’s different. Now, we will be under shade from 11am to 3pm and will enjoy the pool mostly at night. No more lunches at Shell beach or Cheval Blanc. On our last 6 trips in the last 5 years, we’ve always stayed on the beach at a hotel or villa. Now looking for a great hillside rental and might be asking several questions on the villa & hotel forum. Get your spots checked, my Wife has had an additional 22 spots removed in the last year, 2 were Basil cell and 4 had progressed enough for the doctors to recommend surgical removal with about a quarter size piece of flesh. So all you sun worshippers including myself, get an annual spot check, we waited 5 years too long.

Thank you for sharing this personal story

An excellent reminder on the negative effects of the sun, Scotik - thanks for sharing. I hope your wife is doing well.

Sorry to hear! We are living that, too. We bought a nice pop up sunshade tent at Wal-Mart and just pack it in the carry-on. It’s been to St. Barts, Hawaii, and Florida and totally worth the hassle of jamming the metal poles in the bag, because we can still go to the beach with it and a bag full of Vanicream sunblock. Try Hotel Le P’tit Morne for a hillside hotel with great shade if you don’t require onsite dining. The rooms have fully covered porches overlooking the ocean.

A St Barth dermatologist states in this week's Le Journal that he diagnoses 200 cases of skin cancer among the ~9500 island inhabitants each year.

A breakdown in terms of patients and cancer type is not given. As the experiences of both Scot's wife and Sxmbeachlover show, patients can have more than one skin cancer so the number of patients is likely less. Basal cell can be expected to account for the vast majority - much less serious than melanoma but, as Scot's wife can attest, its significance is best not downplayed.

We purchased a TeleBrella in January from Shadeusa, perhaps we heard about it on SBH, but don't remember. We took it to New Zealand for a month, and I must say, it is the most practical, well engineered, beach umbrella we have ever owned. We travel around the world for our beach experiences, and it fits in our checked baggage. Now, we will never leave home without it, well except for St Barts, where we leave our umbrella at our villa. Time to start the countdown!!!!

sxmbeachlover said:

We purchased a TeleBrella

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Wow. Watched the video on their web. Question: Does it have to come completely apart every time or is there an intermediate configuration that can be folded and carried around in the back of the Jimny? Also, I see they make chairs, do you have any experience with those?