Do people with darker skin have less to worry about from UV radiation than light skinned people do?
All people, regardless of the color of their skin, must be concerned about exposure to UV radiation. However, melanin (the pigment in the skin that gives it its dark color) does keep darker-skinned people from getting sunburned as quickly as fair-skinned individuals and can protect them from cancer and some of the long term damaging effects of UV radiation. Therefore, fair-skinned individuals need to take more care in protecting themselves from too much sun exposure.
