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Fact check: UV radiation causes sunburns, skin cancer

The claim: Getting sunburned is a mindset; the sun does not cause skin cancer

A March 3 Instagram post (direct link, archive link) displays several images of humans and the sun.

"Being ‘burned’ is a mindset," reads the post's text. "The sun does NOT cause skin cancer."

It was liked more than 7,000 times in three days.

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Our rating: False

Being sunburned is not a mindset; it is an immune response the body elicits when skin cells are damaged by ultraviolet radiation, dermatologists told USA TODAY. Over time, mutated skin cells can cause people to develop skin cancer.

UV radiation damages skin cells

Sunburns are an immune system response, not a "mindset," as the post alleges.

When ultraviolet light from the sun makes contact with skin, it can induce the mutation of skin cell DNA, said Dr. Anand Ganesan, a professor of dermatology and biochemistry at the University of California at Irvine.

The mutated skin cells then go through apoptosis, or programmed cell death, to protect the rest of the body from cancer.

"The elimination of those severely damaged cells is what causes the inflammation and redness and pain that we associate with sunburns," said Yale dermatologist Dr. Sean Christensen.

But this protective physiological process isn't 100% effective. Overexposure to ultraviolet light is the primary cause of skin cancer, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Cancer Society.

"There are always some cells that slip through the cracks," Christensen said. "Not all of the damage is repaired or eliminated and that’s why sunburns do increase the risk of skin cancer."

No amount of dietary change or voluntary exposure can protect people from UV damage, said Christensen. However, the more melanin your skin has, the more protected you are from the sun.

"Melanin is a pigment in the skin that acts as a natural sunscreen to prevent UV damage to DNA," Ganesan said.

When people with lighter complexions sunburn or tan, their body produces more melanin. This is not a healthy way for people to build resistance to ultraviolet radiation, though, because the cell mutation has already happened at this point, the dermatologists said.

"It is just a matter of probability of whether that particular sunburn event was enough to cause skin cancer," Ganesan said.

People can protect themselves from the sun by wearing protective clothing, staying in shaded areas and applying sunscreen, according to the CDC.

Fact check: Sunscreen protects against cancer, doesn't cause it, experts say

USA TODAY reached out to the social media user who shared the post for comment.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: Evidence shows UV exposure causes skin cancer