Sun Protection

Every summer it’s the same thing. No matter if it was from my mother growing up, or from my wife now, it’s the never-ending reminder to put sun block on. Being a redhead, the sun has never agreed with me, but for some reason I can never escape the annual summer burn(s). This summer in Japan, of course, was no different.

The Nagoya climate is hot…a lot hotter than I’m used to, and because I have a hard time with the sun, I wondered how the Japanese would handle it. It’s very common to find women carrying sun umbrellas, wearing full-length clothes or long-sleeved gloves, and sometimes even long-range sun visors to protect themselves from the sun.

We asked a few of our women friends about this, and they simply said that even though it’s hot, they would rather protect their skin. To some, it’s even considered more attractive to have whiter skin.

What a simple answer.

Don’t get me wrong, I do think tan skin is beautiful, but at what cost? Of course I’m biased. Me + sun = red…always. I am jealous of those that have it easy and turn bronze with no trouble, but I have to side with the Japanese on this one.
Why do we worship the sun so? After all, UV is damaging regardless if it turns your skin dark brown or bright red!