There is a lot of information out there about skin cancer, but it’s not all correct. In fact, some of the most well-known tips for avoiding skin cancer are not helpful at all, mainly because they ignore a few important facts. If you’re concerned about skin cancer, here’s your chance to uncover the truth they don’t want you to know and debunk some of the dumb things they say about this common malady.
Myth 1: Your Body Has an Immune System
The reality is that your body does not actually have an immune system, per se. It is the immune system! Point being, your body has several systems, some examples being the skeletal, respiratory and endocrine systems, but they all play a role in immunity. They are all functioning systems with a clear set of processes, unlike a so-called immune system. Instead, the human body has more of an immune alliance, with cooperation among various systems to fight invasion and infection.
It’s all coordinated by the brain, which gives an immune response so that the organs can take action in a myriad of different ways. For example, the thymus in the endocrine system puts out white blood cells, while stomach acid can destroy parasites directly. The systems all come together to help the body resist disease. Thus, the health of the immune system is actually the health of the whole body, and weakness in certain systems of the body can have a holistically detrimental impact on your immunity and health. How does this apply to skin cancer? Keep reading!
Myth 2: You Can Only Get Melanoma on Your Skin
Melanoma is cancer of the melanocytes, which can be anywhere in the body, not just the skin. This is why melanoma can spread inside the body to other organs. In the later stages, melanoma often spreads to the organs nearby, most often becoming cancer of the lungs, liver, stomach, brain or bones.
Now think of this in terms of our new understanding of immunity. We are missing the bigger picture merely slathering the sunbock 90 all over our outer shell. Yes this protects us from most of the harmful rays from the sun, but compromised immune systems can manifest melanoma from within! You smell like a coconut and you may not be entirely protected.
Myth 3: Your Diet Has No Effect on Skin Cancer
There are some essential nutrients you need to support the immune system so it can prevent skin cancer. To start, you need adequate animal sources of saturated fats. These can give you fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.
Vitamin A is essential for skin growth and to maintain skin integrity. Vitamin D helps promote calcium absorption, and your immune response needs calcium to work properly if you want it to fight off cancer.
Vitamin E can protect your cells from free radicals in the body, which are often brought on by sunlight. Vitamin K can help with added immune system support.
You can also supplement with essential fatty acids, cod liver oil and iodine. In addition, you should take a supplement meant specifically for immune system support if you can’t get the recommended daily amount of each vitamin. And no we’re not talking about just any old vitamin supplement. Whole food concentrates are the supplements that will really make a difference here, not synthetic one-a-day, A-Z nonsense.
Myth 4: Everyone Should Stay Out of the Sun to Avoid Skin Cancer
It’s a myth that we need to avoid the sun or at least use sunblock every time we go outside. But the reality is that not everyone gets skin cancer even after hours of sun exposure. This is often because they have excellent nutrition, leading to optimal immune response.
But one group of people who desperately need to stay out of the sun are those with a diet lacking in proper nutrients. If you don’t eat many saturated animal fats, and you eat a lot of sugar and unhealthy fats instead, your body might not have the immune response it needs to withstand sun exposure properly, and melanomas can propagate.
Myth 5: Healthy Skin Cells Don’t Die
This is a confusing one for many folks, but cell death is one of the essential processes in a normal cell cycle. Skin cells have to be healthy enough to die when they’re supposed to. With suppressed immune response and additional growth factors, they just divide. The mission of cancer cells is solely to eat and then divide rather than die. So you have a better chance of avoiding skin cancer when your cells are indeed healthy enough to die when your body needs them to.
Proper immune response is necessary to avoid skin cancer. And the best way to optimize your immune response is through proper nutrition. Complete avoidance of the sun won’t save you from melanoma, but a healthy inner body can.
