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Actually,
dealing with photosensitivity is much more simple and painless than you might
think. It's just that the causes are not always simple and painless. This article
works under the assumption that the photosensitivity issues are limited to oversensitive
eyes and somewhat sensitive (or easily prone to burning) skin, and thus need
minor or basic protective measures.
There are ailments such as Xeroderma Pigmentosum (a genetic disorder that is
usually fatal by late teens) and Polymorphus Light Eruption (an actual allergy
to at least sunlight, if not UV in general) that cause far GREATER reactions
to sunlight and require far greater protection methods; I do not go into those
there.
GENERAL
Simply staying indoors is the best way to avoid the sun :) However, I realize
that's not always practical if you work a day job or a job that requires frequent
traveling, or simply need to go out and run errands.
When possible, avoid exposure between 10am and 2pm, your local time. This
is when the greatest concentration of UV radiation is hitting the earth.
On cloudy days, 80% of the UV radiation still penetrates the cloud cover!
Sun protection is just as important when it's cloudy as when it isn't.
Tight-weave clothing. It's not so much the material itself as the weave -
how solid is it vs. how much light it lets through. The simplest test of this
is to hold the fabric up to the light and see how much light you can see through
it. The tighter the weave, the more light it blocks.
There's also my article on using nutrition to
reduce and prevent sunburn.
EYES
Hat or visor - something with a brim over the eyes. 4" brim all around
the hat are recommend for best results.
Dark sunglasses - does not have to be prescription lenses, but does have
to have UV blocking
Welding glasses - UVEX Astrospecs - Not something to make a fashion statement
with, but they're not screaming "welding equipment!" at 20 paces
either. Here's a picture of the Astrospecs
and here's the UVEX product lens
chart for a general overview of the different types of lenses you can
get for them (Another advantage is that the lenses on this style are removable,
not fixed, so you can use whatever lens colors you like on the frames.) You'll
need Acrobat
Reader to view the PDF files that are linked off the lens chart, but the
main lens chart page is in standard HTML format. Your local welding store
should carry these in stock if they stock supplies for "OxyAcetelyne
torch welding".
You can also visit Uvex's eyewear product listing.
Nutrition: Eat sprouts - Bean sprouts,
alfalfa sprouts, radish sprouts, mung bean sprouts, etc. Eat at least a handful
daily. This will (and I know from personal experience) reduce the annoyance
from bright lights and sunlight. It won't necessarily eliminate it, but it
will reduce it. Keep this up - if you stop, your eyes will become more photosensitive
again, and believe me, you WILL notice. If your doctor has told you you're
losing your sight (whether from diabetes or cataracts or whatever), over time,
this diet WILL IMPROVE
YOUR SIGHT.
SKIN / BODY
Sunscreen - ones with titanium dioxide or zinc oxide will work the best.
Don't be afraid to be liberal with the application, even though it may give
your skin a whitish tone. See this E-Medicine
article on sunscreens and photoprotection for more information on sunscreens.
Welding jackets are nice because you don't have to worry about any light
getting through the leather. :) However, they're not the kind of jacket you
buy if you want to make a fashion statement with your sun protection. What
they are is 100% practical - they block the light, and some of the brands
are also heat treated (to reduce the heat you feel) since welding equipment
gives off heat as well as UV radiation. If you want to see what they look
like, Here's a welding jacket picture.
General skin covering - besides welding jackets, long sleeved shirts/coats
as well as long pants are good basic methods of keeping your skin covered.
"Business casual" styles provide for a lot of comfortable clothing
that covers the skin.
Useable sunscreen brands and packaging descriptions:
OTHER TIPS
Fluorescent lighting bothers some people, particularly combined with staring
at a computer monitor for hours on end. Fluorescent lighting does flicker,
although not everybody notices it. Computer monitors typically flicker at
different rates, not always the same rate as fluorescent lighting does. If
fluorescent lighting does not bother you, consider yourself lucky - a lot
of workplaces use it because it's cheaper to run than incandescent lighting,
and a lot more people are bothered by it than readily admit to it.
Try differently tinted glasses - the advantage of the Uvex lenses mentioned
above is that it's easy to try different colors fairly cheaply (around $10
per lens) instead of paying $100 and up for a pair of prescription glasses.
Your eyes may be more sensitive to a different portion of the spectrum than
others, and may need different color tinting than normal. For instance, I
know someone who uses red tinted lenses for day-to-day use, whereas I normally
use the green-tinted (Uvex) Shade 5 lenses normally. It all depends on what
makes your eyes comfortable.
Covering the windows: I've seen suggestions that included painting the windows,
covering them with styrofoam and then painting the styrofoam to match the
house, putting black plastic over the windows, and hanging thick curtains
on the inside. What will probably work the safest - i.e., least likely to
draw attention to your residence - is something that is not obvious from the
outside - if you're going to cover the windows, put a layer of white on the
side facing the outdoors to make it less obvious to the neighbors - white
seems to be a default color for most people's window shades and curtain liners.
It will also keep the house a little cooler in the summer. If you're in an
apartment, your mileage may vary - your neighbors may not be as rigorous in
covering their windows as effectively, if at all, so your apartment may get
overheated anyway, especially if you're on an upper floor - heat rises through
a building.
This article is presented as part of an ongoing effort to present other views outside of, as well as within, the online vampire community. Those of us who consider ourselves vampiric don't always look at things from the same viewpoint due to our life experiences. As such, the views and opinions contained in this article are entirely those of the author(s), and may not necessarily be shared by SphynxCatVP. The webmaster is not under obligation to update or otherwise keep current the contents of this article. Most importantly, only you can decide for yourself whether this article or any of the author(s) other views are useful or applicable to you - you are responsible for using your own reasoning and judgement, so judge wisely.
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