Truck driver skin aging after 28 years of sun exposure

ecotourist said:
As city dwellers we get a very skewed view of people's health and survival. Everyone we see around us is relatively well (or they wouldn't be at work, out shopping, eating out, etc). Except for a small number of family members we never see the people who are home bound or no longer alive.

When you live in a small town and know a lot of people of all ages you know that Mrs so and so died last week, Mary is poorly again, Jim is stuck at home since his stroke, the Joneses have a disabled child, and so on.

When you live in the city and mostly interact with people at your own work place, or who are out in public, you don't see the ones who aren't there. And if, like most people, you don't keep up with your classmates you won't know who has had a heart attack, who is very ill with cancer, or who has died. You don't even know about your own cohort.
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What’s your take on why rural people with lower or no levels of education tend to look older vs city dwellers at the same age? I’m not talking about extreme cases of, say, a rich person with annual budget with several for facials and what not vs poor drunkard and a smoker. Just a typical city dweller vs a rural one. I’ve noticed this tendency in other countries too, so it is not only in US.

Is it due to sun exposure, as one is more out and about (typically) in the open in a rural area? Manual labor, so dirty hands touching face? City folk are more stern with their emotions so less facial mimics?

Very curious for your take on this
 
Much of this is genetic. My people are a mix of Mediterranean and Eastern European so are fairly dark. I have an olive skin tone and don't typically burn although caution is required when we visit the Caribbean in mid-winter.
Wifey is of German heritage, freckles, fair skin and all, so has to be much more cautious and needs to be more attentive to using sunscreen and wearing a wide brim straw hat.
WRT life expectancy a lot of that is genetic as well. I have really great blood chemistry numbers at 67 while my mother does as well at 97. Wife's father died a month shy of 100 and she is also in good shape at a year or two more than I.
Lots of factors involved in both skin health and longevity which have nothing to do with visits to a physician.
 
The Artillerist said:
What’s your take on why rural people with lower or no levels of education tend to look older vs city dwellers at the same age? I’m not talking about extreme cases of, say, a rich person with annual budget with several for facials and what not vs poor drunkard and a smoker. Just a typical city dweller vs a rural one. I’ve noticed this tendency in other countries too, so it is not only in US.

Is it due to sun exposure, as one is more out and about (typically) in the open in a rural area? Manual labor, so dirty hands touching face? City folk are more stern with their emotions so less facial mimics?

Very curious for your take on this
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This issue is likely to be controversial but you may be right. If true (and I haven't done that assessment myself) I don't think the explanation would be simple and would likely be multifactorial:
  • Rural people on average probably have more activities involving sun exposure (farming, serious gardening, participation in horse events, etc.)
  • I suspect rural people are more likely to smoke.
  • City people tend to have better access to appearance aids (stylish haircuts - a top hair stylist is less likely to be found in a rural area, nicer glasses, dental care - there's nothing like a missing tooth to drag down your appearance)
  • City people tend to be somewhat better off and are therefore more able to afford appearance aids. Nice glasses are a lot more expensive. A post and crown to replace a missing tooth is remarkably expensive.
  • City folks may simply focus more on their appearance. I think we'd all agree it would be hard to keep your skin in great condition when you're out hauling grain or feeding the calves.
 
ecotourist said:
This issue is likely to be controversial but you may be right. If true (and I haven't done that assessment myself) I don't think the explanation would be simple and would likely be multifactorial:
  • Rural people on average probably have more activities involving sun exposure (farming, serious gardening, participation in horse events, etc.)
  • I suspect rural people are more likely to smoke.
  • City people tend to have better access to appearance aids (stylish haircuts - a top hair stylist is less likely to be found in a rural area, nicer glasses, dental care - there's nothing like a missing tooth to drag down your appearance)
  • City people tend to be somewhat better off and are therefore more able to afford appearance aids. Nice glasses are a lot more expensive. A post and crown to replace a missing tooth is remarkably expensive.
  • City folks may simply focus more on their appearance. I think we'd all agree it would be hard to keep your skin in great condition when you're out hauling grain or feeding the calves.
Click to expand...

Give me land over nice skin any day of the week
 
The Artillerist said:
Back then no one knew. I looked up, and it was 1997 when science officially confirmed that sun tanning causes cancer.

Also, many men consider it unmanly to use skincare products, including sunscreen, so…
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I remember going to summer camp in 1980 and a sunscreen was actually recommended. I think my parents got me a bottle, but it was before SPF label were the norm (but were available) and what I had was this thin, alcohol based stuff that slathered on kind of greasy. It might have had some PABA, which is pretty much gone from modern sunscreens because of sensitivities.

There had been correlations between sunlight exposure and skin cancer. Especially in Australia. I heard this researcher's study on melanoma and latitude correlation was in the 1950s.

After returning to work at the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Oliver’s research focused on statistical and epidemiological studies of national trends in the causes of disease and death in Australia, including diabetes, cancer (notably melanoma and its association with latitude) and tuberculosis.​

However, there had been a lot of suspicions of cancer being cause by UV for some time. This article is from the late 80s and is mostly about whether or not certain sunscreen ingredients might be toxic.
​
Dan Beio, manager of personal-care products for Amway, explains that UVA rays penetrate deeper into the dermis, “resulting in long-term damage, such as cancer and the breakdown of the collagen and elastin fibers, which support the skin. UVB rays burn the upper layers, apparent as a sunburn. UVA damage is indicated by a tan that takes 24 to 72 hours to show up.”​
 
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