• Question: Why Do People With Lighter Skin Get Sun Burned Whereas People With Darker Skin Only Get Darker?

    Asked by anon-181889 on 22 Jun 2018.
    • Photo: Alexandra Hogan

      Alexandra Hogan answered on 22 Jun 2018:

      This is because of the amount of melanin in someone’s skin. A light-skinned person doesn’t have much melanin, therefore is more susceptible to the damaging effects of UV radiation (sunlight), whereas a person with darker skin has more melanin to absorb light and avoid damaging sun exposure, to some degree (although the exact mechanisms and degree of protection are still being investigated).

    • Photo: Joanne Sharpe

      Joanne Sharpe answered on 22 Jun 2018:

      This is to do with melanin. The more melanin you have, the darker your skin – it is a pigment that absorbs light. So if you have darker skin you have more melanin to absorb the sun’s rays and therefore are less susceptible to the damaging effects of UV. When you get a tan, you temporarily produce more melanin because your skin has been damaged, so there really is no such thing as a “healthy tan” and you should wear SPF always!!

    • Photo: Ashley Akbari

      Ashley Akbari answered on 24 Jun 2018:

      As Alex and Jo have mentioned this is mainly to do with Melanin

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