Keratosis pilaris and sun exposure

There are many things can essentially “annoy” your keratosis pilaris (or more exactly, your skin) and cause you to either have more KP outbreaks and / or cause your KP symptoms to worsen. Among the most common are the cold, sweat and dry skin. And while many people debate the sun and it’s effects on keratosis pilaris, there is some important information that you should know.

While there are quite a few people on the internet claiming that sun exposure is a great “natural treatment for keratosis pilaris”, there is more evidence to the contrary. Not only does too much natural sun exposure lead to premature aging, it can cause dry and leathery skin and actually worsen your KP symptoms and / or outbreaks.

There are more then a few people on internet forums these days claiming that using tanning beds is a great way to clear up your KP. Again, this can lead to the skin problems mentioned above. And on top of all this, both over exposure to the sun and tanning beds can lead to skin cancer, yet anothor huge reason to avoid them.

The plain and simple truth is that, while no one yet knows 100% for sure, too much direct exposure to the sun may in fact worsen your KP. There have been many recent studies that are starting to back up this theory. There is absolutely no research (clinical tests or otherwise), much less any proof, that lots of sun exposure will help your keratosis pilaris symptoms improve in any way.

Anyone, regardless of if they have KP or not, should always use a quality high SPF sunscreen everyday. And if you have KP, you should be using it even on cloudy days as well. Who knows, you may even see your improve as a result. Whether you have have KP or not, it’s always preferable to use sunscreen regularly.

To sum this all up, regardless of whatever some random person posts on an online forum or bulletin board, neither tanning beds or lots of direct sunlight have absolutely no documented proof of lessening your keratosis pilaris in any way, and there’s also quite a bit of evidence that they may both dry your skin, which would worsen most people’s KP. So, always use sunscreen and take any information posted on a forum with a grain (or pound) of salt.

Recently, an all natural treatment for keratosis pilaris has been getting a lot of national media attention. Many people are attributing their being KP free to this new system, which uses commonly available ingredients that can be bought at any grocery store. You can learn more about it here.