UV Lights Crystal Filipek, Kayla Morgan, Shelli Ferrebee, Alex Barger, Amanda Lipscomb, Austin Perala

Introduction Ultraviolet light is an electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than that of a visible light, but longer than x-rays, in the range 10 nm to 400 nm, and energies from 3eV to 124 eV. It is typically found as part of the radiation received by the Earth from the sun. Most humans are aware of the painful condition of sunburn. Through these waves are invisible to the human eye, some insects can see them. We can study stars and galaxies by studying the UV light they give off. The “ultraviolet” in ultraviolet light references UV light is beyond violet the electromagnetic spectrum. UV light can be used for spectrophotometry (to analyze chemical structure), analyzing minerals, chemical markers, checking electrical insulation, sterilization, disinfecting drinking water, food processing, lasers, and many other areas There are four types of UV lights, UV-A, UV-B, UV-C, UV-V. They each have a different range of nanometers. UV-A is 400nm-315nm and that’s UV Blacklight, UV-B is 315nm- 280nmand that’s UV Dangerous, UV-C is 280nm- 200nm and that’s UV Germicidal Ultraviolet at 254nm and UV-V is 200nm-100nm and that’s UV Vacuum

How People Get Exposed Many people during the summer go sunbathing. They lay outside underneath the sun to darken their skin. Doing this lets all the UV lights in the sun hit your body. During the winter people like to go in the tanning bed to darken their skin since they can’t sunbath. This is even more UV lights than the actual sun. Driving for long periods of the time can expose your skin the rays. Some people can feel their left arm getting hot while in the car and its because the rays are hitting it.

How People Get Exposed If people have their eyes exposed outside then the UV lights are hitting their eyes. Wearing clothes that do not cover you up much can expose that skin to rays. There are different wavelengths that effect the exposure it has on your skin. The lower the wavelength the more exposure it will have on your skin.

Dangers UV light can cause serious skin cancer. The worst kind of skin cancer people can get from UV light is called Melanoma. It is usually curable during the early stages but if its not found early enough then your risks of dying can be high. Teenagers that go tanning a lot sometimes see spots on their body where their skin doesn’t look the same but don’t think to much of it. Those spots can be signs of melanoma. Skin cancer can change the appearance of your skin for the rest of your life, just because you wanted to be “tan”.

Dangers Researchers found that being under the sun for long periods of time with your eyes exposed can lead to eye diseases. The eyes can get photokeratisis. This is a sunburn to the cornea and it usually lasts one to two days. UV lights can also lead to Cataracts which is loss of transparency in the lens of the eye. It makes you see cloudy. If this is not treated then it can turn into being blind. The biggest affect UV lights have on eyes is to the cornea and retina.

Dangers When you stand outside and absorb UV light your skin weakens. Sunburns can give blisters, wrinkles, nausea, dizziness, dehydration, and soreness. Sunburns can be increased by medications a person can take. Once you have a sunburn your skin will be more likely to absorb UV light for it to get worst. People will misbelieve a sunburn and think that once you burn you can get a better tan. This may be true but it is only making your skin worst.

Dangers Disbelief is a big danger in UV light. People do not think that their skin is really being damaged from the sun because they like to be tan. During the summer people go outside with out applying sunscreen and will be out there for the whole day meaning they have absorbed a day full of UV lights. Dark skinned individuals believe that they can’t get burnt but that’s completely false. Teenagers that go tanning do not think that anything is happening to them. Their skin will actually be very bad, very quick. Going tanning at such a young age will increase the risk for wrinkles or skin cancer when your older. A big danger of disbelief that many people do not know is going out on a cloudy day. 80% of the UV lights can shine through the clouds and reach your skin. Just because it is a cloudy day doesn’t mean you do not need to use sun saftey.

Prevention Before going outdoors, put on sunscreen. It is always better to protect your skin that to take chances. People with very fair skin need to put more sunscreen on than others. All young children should have sunscreen on at all times when outside to prevent getting skin cancer when they get older. Sunscreen prevents against sunburns, and skin cancer. It is important to use 15+ SPF, 30 minutes before going outside. Sunscreen protects the skin by absorbing the UV light.

Prevention Try to avoid going outside from 10 am to 4pm, this is the hottest time of the day If you avoid going outside during those hours then you will have a lower chance of getting skin cancer and dehydration. Also you can prevent heat stroke if you stay indoors and drink plenty of fluids. With staying in the shade or wearing a hat to prevent the sun you can keep your skin healthy for when you grow older.

Prevention Wear light colored clothes can block UV rays It reflects sunlight better than what dark colors do. You will always feel a lot cooler and relaxed wearing light colored clothing. It prevents you from feeling hot and sweating so you stay hydrated. Wearing lightweight and loose-fitted clothes can keep you cooler so air passes over your body. If you can see your skin through a clothing item, it means that UV lights can hit that skin.

Prevention Use common sense. If you love being outdoors in the summer, for example swimming, playing sports, going to the beach, then you need to be extra careful and use a lot of sunscreen to protect your skin. If you see dry patches it can be pre-cursors to skin cancer. Going to the tanning booth everyday for weeks, months or even years is not common dress at all. When going outside put on sunglasses to protect your eyes. Sitting under the sun without them will hurt them.

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