Posts Tagged: skin
Satsumas and Navels - Too Late?
There have been some complaints about satsuma mandarin fruit having problems. These are prone to a rind/skin/peel breakdown when the fruit is not picked promptly. It's not clear what the cause is - wet winter, warm winter - but it is less of a problem if the fruit is picked when it is mature. A lot of the time in southern California, satsumas will develop good flavor and sweetness, but for lack of cool weather, they don't turn bright orange, a hallmark of the fruit. So growers will leave the fruit on longer, hoping for color, but the fruit becomes over mature, and more susceptible to breakdown. This weakening of the peel then opens it up to infection by fungi, such as Alternaria. In warm winters, the peel matures more rapidly and is more susceptible. Early maturing varieties like ‘Okitsuwase' are especially prone to breakdown later in the season, since their rind matures earlier. They end up being a mess, as can be seen in the photo below.
Navels can have a similar problem in these winters with erratic rainfall. Common wisdom is you don't irrigate in the winter, right? Wrong. With no, low and widely spaced rain events, the tree roots dry out, and rewet with rain. Navels are building their sugar in the winter and they become suction balls for water as the sugar increases. The fruit will continue to grow as the tree takes up water. When the roots run out of water, and then are suddenly rewetted during this period, the fruit can suck up water so rapidly that the skin cant expand fast enough and will split. So this is what happens with uneven irrigation or rainfall this time of year. One of those abiotic problems in citrus.
satsuma rind breakdown
split navels
A new paper on chemical ecology of bed bug
A new work from our group is about chemical ecology of bed bugs. === Scents from Bed...
Farmers Should Make a Skin Check a Priority
Farming has plenty of challenges. One of the hazards that farmers worry about the least are the dangers from working in the sun year-round. Harvest time can provide a reminder for farmers to pay attention to the condition of their skin.
"More than 11,000 Americans die each year from skin cancer," says Dr. David M. Pariser, a dermatologist and president of the American Academy of Dermatology. "But when detected early, skin cancer has a cure rate of 99 percent. Since research shows farmers are among the least likely workers to receive a skin examination by a physician, it's important that farmers perform regular skin self-examinations, which could mean the difference between life and death."
It’s as easy as “ABC” to remember how you can identify a mole or lesion that needs the attention of a dermatologist:
Asymmetry (one half is unlike the other)
Border (irregular, scalloped or poorly defined)
Color (varies from one area to another)
Diameter (the size of a pencil eraser or larger)
Evolving (changing in size, shape or color)
To help farmers minimize their risk of skin cancer, the American Academy of Dermatology recommends that everyone Be Sun Smart:
* Use water-resistant sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30 on all exposed skin, before heading out to the field or pasture. Re-apply approximately every two hours, even on cloudy days.
* Wear long-sleeved shirts, pants, a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses.
* Stay in the shade when possible, and make sure your tractor has a sun umbrella. The sun's rays are strongest between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
* If working near water, snow or sand, seek extra shade because these surfaces reflect the sun’s rays and increase your chance of sunburn.
* Look at your skin after each harvest. Ask a partner to help. If you notice any moles or spots changing, growing or bleeding, make an appointment to see a dermatologist.
The Academy offers a downloadable Body Mole Map with information on how to perform a skin exam and images of the ABCDEs of melanoma. The mole map is available at www.aad.org/checkspot. The site also has information on how to find a free cancer screening from a dermatologist in your area.
Performing a skin self-exam requires regularly looking over the entire body, including the back, scalp, soles of the feet and between the toes, and on the palms. It is important to use both a full-length mirror and a hand-held mirror to see the scalp, back and buttocks.
For more information about skin cancer, visit the SkinCancerNet section of
U.S. culture linked to greater sunscreen use among Latinos
As melanoma rates have jumped nearly 29 percent among U.S. Latinos since 1992, their adoption of American cultural beliefs is associated with more sunscreen use, but not sun-protective clothing, new research finds as reported in HealthFinder.According to the authors, acculturated Latinos might have increased exposure to sun safety information via health-care access, education and expanded social networks, but display decreased engagement in some sun-safe behaviors.
In conducting the study, published in the July issue of the Archives of Dermatology, researchers analyzed survey data from the U.S. National Cancer Institute and questioned 496 Latinos about sun-safe behavior, such as their use of sunscreen and whether or not they wore long-sleeved shirts and long pants or took shade for at least one hour when outside on sunny days. Researchers also asked them about their health-care access, educational level and social support networks.
The study found that acculturation, and how long they lived in the United States, may affect their efforts to avoid sun-related health problems.
The authors noted that social networks, such as support from friends and family as well as community and religious organizations, appeared to have the most overall influence on sun-safe behaviors among U.S. Latinos. Although acculturation had a positive influence on their use of sunscreen, there was a negative influence on their use of shade and sun-protective clothing.
The researchers concluded that because sun safety is critical for the prevention of skin cancer regardless of skin type, the findings could help public health officials develop specialized prevention programs for Latinos. They added that future research should focus on sun-safe behaviors other than sunscreen use.
Source: HealthFinder, U.S. Culture Linked to Greater Sunscreen Use Among Latinos, July 24, 2011.