Sunbathing Culture in the Netherlands and the Arctic Ozone Hole

CONTENTS

October 2012

Cover issue:  Sunbathing culture in the Netherlands and the Arctic ozone hole
Special Topic:  Is it that nice, your excessively suntanned skin? - Ozone hole and sunbathing
References
About the structure

Arctic Ozone Hole appeared for the first time above the Arctic in 2011.
The region affected by hole goes beyond the encircled area, and the
effect can be felt way down to 45 degrees North latitude. The Netherlands
which lies around 52 degrees North latitude is well within the concerned
zone.

Sunbathing Culture in the Netherlands, and the Arctic Ozone Hole

In July 2012, the warm summer days appeared only intermittently in the Netherlands, and it was only from August, the summer sun stayed with us constantly. The people then went outside and enjoyed the sun. Towards the end of summer, I saw suntanned Dutch people everywhere around the country. Then what I noticed was not just the people who were mildly suntanned, but a lot who were sunburned.

  Sunbathing seems like a part of the Dutch culture. Sitting in the sun in a country like the Netherlands in where the climate is just so gently warm is indeed very nice. If there weren’t the problem with the thinning of the Arctic ozone layer, I would like to enjoy the sun much more here. But this issue is an undeniable fact, and everybody knows it.

  In 2011, there observed an ozone hole as severe as the Antarctic ozone hole for the very first time above the Arctic region, and its effect reached down to the area around 45 degrees north latitude. The Netherlands which lies around 52 degrees north latitude is well within the range of its effect. What would happen to the Arctic ozone layer in the future? And how would it affect the people’s health in the Netherlands? 

PHOTOGRAPHY FOTOLIA, PRODUCTION, TEXT, TRANSLATION AND EDITING NORIKO ISHIBASHI

Special Topic:

Is it that nice, your excessively suntanned skin? – Arctic ozone hole and sunbathing culture in the Netherlands

The ozone issue

It has already been thirty years since the ozone hole over the Antarctica was first observed in 1982. In the Montreal Protocol held in 1987, nations have reached an agreement which is designed to phase out the production of the ozone-destroying chemicals such as CFCs and bromine containing halons. This came into effect more than twenty years ago. Though, the amount of CFCs and bromine containing halons in the atmosphere reached its peak in 1990s, it has been declining since then. However, the chemicals produced and emitted before the protocol will remain in the atmosphere for another several decades, and hence, the ozone depletion is still an on-going matter. It is expected that the Antarctic ozone hole will not completely disappear even by the end of the century, meanwhile a large amount of CFCs is still emitted from the old air-conditioners which were produced before the treaty. Some of the other ozone-damaging chemicals, like methyl bromide, are also banned, but they are still used in developed nations, and that is making the treaty difficult to adhere to what it is designed for.

Arctic ozone hole

In Antarctic, an ozone hole is observed every spring, and a sign of recoveries has never been seen yet. In the centre of the Antarctic ozone hole, ozone is destroyed at the rate of 3% every day. In the atmosphere, the ozone-destroying chemicals are saturated and are estimated to stay there till around 2050; this implies that even after the middle of the century, the amount of unwanted chemicals will not completely decrease to the pre-1980’s level.

  In Arctic, the scale of ozone destruction reached the largest in 2011. The depletion level was unprecedented since the recordings of the amount of ozone began. It was as critical as that of Antarctic’s, and in March 2011, an ozone hole appeared for the first time above Arctic. The hole stayed swaying for several months over the countries around Arctic before it disappeared, and a part of it also went through the skies over Japan.

The effect to health

If the Montreal Protocol and its following amendments did not take place, what could happen to the ozone layer? According to the computer simulations, 60% of ozone would be destroyed by 2065, and by 2100, the ozone layer would disappear completely. If such a dire situation took place, skin tissue could get damaged only within 5 minutes of exposure to the sun.

  Sun light, for our body, is essential for the nurture of Vitamin D which is necessary for the healthy growth and maintenance of bones. It also plays an important role for the reactions of neurotransmitters, serotonin and tryptamine. And it is like any nutrients our body needs to take, there is an optimum amount of sun light for our health.
  Ultraviolet light from the sun which reaches the Earth’s surface is mainly composed of Ultraviolet A (UVA) and Ultraviolet B (UVB). 90% of it is UVA, and most of the rest is UVB. And both can cause melanoma.

  Suppose you sit in the sun with sunscreen cream thoroughly spread over the skin. UVA ray from the sun is totally unhindered by the ozone layer, and reaches your skin undiminished. UVA also, not blocked either by sunscreens, penetrates the surface of your skin and goes deep into the skin tissue, so the damage takes place at the depth of your skin. UVB, on the other hand, is partially absorbed by the ozone particles, and your skin receives a shower of the rest. However, sunscreen cream partially blocks UVB, and the rest enters your skin. Inside the skin tissue, unlike UVA, UVB does not reach the depth. Therefore, only the surface of the skin gets damaged. What makes your skin tanned is the reaction of your skin tissue against the damage caused by UVB.

  The ozone damage is considered to continue another thirty years, and the number of patients with melanoma is expected to rise. As skin cancer normally takes some decades to appear after the exposure to the sun, it takes a long time before the people who are now exposed to the excessive amount of radiation may have skin cancer. And researchers believe that the peak of skin cancer is still on its way.

  In fact, the number of patients with melanoma has doubled in the US since the 1975 level, and in some parts of New Zealand and Australia, the number is twice as much since 1994. The amount of ultraviolet rays is increasing, and the number of patients is following likewise.

For the Dutch, sitting in the sun is a part of their culture

For the skin

For the Dutch, sitting in the sun is a part of their culture. Then how can the people living in the Netherlands and other countries which lie in the mid-to-high-latitudes get nice suntan while keeping the skin healthy?

  The American non-profit organisation, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) carried out a survey testing a number of sunscreens. According to the test, 84% of the sunscreen creams did not satisfy their standards for health and environment, and hence were found inadequate. Some of those even contained questionable chemicals. And there were sunscreens that did not even block the UVB. The questionable chemicals are the molecules which have mimicking receptors to the ones our own hormones have. These chemicals can therefore hinder the hormone reactions in our body, and hence can cause serious problems including damages to DNA molecules. And there was more - some of the sunscreens also had false claims.

  When we cannot really rely on sunscreens, the simple but obvious way of sunbathing is to avoid the direct exposure to the sun. Naturally speaking, the sun light between 10 am and 3pm should be avoided. Even during a couple of hours before and after this period, it is recommended to spend not in the direct sun but under the reduced light, for example, under a tree. Drinking adequate amount of water and keeping the balance of minerals and nutrients are also important.

  The skin which is properly protected with minimum damage can postpone the outbreak of wrinkles and slackening till later times, and it looks fresher, younger, and healthier. Though having your skin tanned into bronze, if the skin gets damaged at the same time and if, as a consequence, your skin is more prone to get wrinkles and slackening earlier than necessary, you may wonder what “sitting in the sun” means to you. Moreover, if your skin developed melanoma, what was all about getting your skin tanned? – it may not be too late – deal with the sun in a proper way, and take care of your skin in order to keep it younger and healthier.

PHOTOGRAPHY FOTOLIA, PRODUCTION, TEXT, TRANSLATION AND EDITING NORIKO ISHIBASHI

References in English

1. Atomospheric science: Fixing the sky, Written by Quirin Schiermeier, 12 August 2009, Nature 460, 792-795 (2009), doi: 10.1038/460792a
2. Are Sunscreens Safe?: Scientific American, July 22, 2008, Earth Talk
3. Unprecedented Arctic ozone loss in 2011, Nature 478, 469-475 (27 October 2011), doi: 10.1038/nature 10556, Published online 02 October 2011
4. Environmental Working Group, The Power of Information, News Coverage: Sunscreen Safe?, Published July 11, 2007
5. Arctic ozone loss at record level, BBC News Science & Environment, 2 October 2011

References in Dutch

1. Zorgen over ozongat boven Noordpool, Wetenschap in Beeld, Ingezonden door Helle & Henrik Stub 27. oktober 2011
2. Noordpool heeft nu ook ozongat, Wetenschap in Beeld, 21. september 2012

About the structure

The articles are written in Japanese, Dutch, and English. The English and Dutch articles are translations of selected passages from the Japanese article, and they are abridged and not translated word by word.