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The health benefits of sunlight may outweigh the risk of skin cancer

(www.economist.com)
277 points petethomas | 1 comments | 19 Sep 25 04:46 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source
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wewxjfq ◴[19 Sep 25 07:50 UTC] No.45299013[source]▶
The way I see it: If you live where your ancestors lived for thousands of years and if you make sure your skin gets gradually attuned to the sun each year, you probably get more health benefits. But beware if you're of Northern European ancestry living in Southern USA or Australia or if you work an office job and only seek the summer sun with pale skin.
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mcdeltat ◴[19 Sep 25 08:43 UTC] No.45299386[source]▶
> make sure your skin gets gradually attuned

Is this a thing? Surely DNA damage from UV is dose-dependent, in which case any greater amount of UV results in a greater chance of skin cancer.

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1. TheCoelacanth ◴[19 Sep 25 14:30 UTC] No.45302080[source]▶
Melanin helps protect from DNA damage by absorbing much of the UV radiation. As you get more exposure to sunlight, your skin produces more melanin resulting in more protection.