If you don't think staying out in the sun for long periods of time puts you at greater risk for skin cancer -- or that a wide-brimmed hat and sunscreen are all you need to be safe from the damaging rays of the sun -- you might be interested in what MoleMap, a melanoma surveillance program in Australia, discovered during a study of New Zealand farmers and skin cancer rates. I was surprised -- and not in a good way -- by the results of the study.

According to the study, these farmers take sun safety very seriously and observe most of the advised sun safety practices of wearing wide-brimmed hats, sunglasses, protective clothing and sunscreen. Yet, with all those preventive measures, half of the New Zealand farmers, or close family members, have been diagnosed with skin cancer. The unavoidable truth is that the work they do requires them to be out in the sun for as long as eight hours a day.

MoleMap general manager Gavin Foulsham is quoted as saying, "We are getting absolutely hammered with ultraviolet rays from the hole in the ozone layer, and our skies are very clean, so we don't get the protective benefits of pollution either, which ironically caused the hole in the first place." The farmers are being asked to pay close attention to any changes to the skin that could indicate skin cancer and to get it checked right away. For all of us who are not required to work outdoors, this is a cautionary tale of why it is essential to take sun safety seriously and to stay out of the sun for long periods of time.