Implications of avoiding sun exposure
Dermatologists forget to clarify that many studies show that malignant melanoma, is not associated with cumulative sun exposure. The sun avoiders died much younger than the sun lovers, and the size of the sun-avoidance effect of sun avoidance is equivalent to the risk of smoking.
Dementia
One risk is those who avoid the sun most of their lives have about a 40% greater risk of getting dementia as they age. While non-melanoma skin cancers are usually just a nuisance (having to get them frozen), few people think dementia is just a nuisance.
Breast Cancer
That means, sun-exposure reduced the risk of breast cancer by three-fold; for every 100 breast cancers in women practicing sun avoidance, the sun-loving women only had about 35 cancers, an enormous reduction.
Bone Cancers
It’s not just hip fractures, but the prevalence of other fractures is lower in those with high lifetime sun exposure. About 400,000 Americans fracture a hip every year and about 20% of them will be dead in a year. So, compare deaths in the US from non-melanoma skin cancer (about 1,500/year) to deaths from hip fracture (70,000).
Multiple Sclerosis
Just recently, scientists confirmed this link between sun avoidance and MS.
Short sightedness
according to the best scientific findings available, children who get a lot of sun-exposure have a much-reduced risk of developing myopia.