Persuasive Speech Outline

Title of Speech: Protect Your Skin

General Purpose: To persuade

Specific Purpose: To persuade my audience to protect their skin from harmful effects of UV damage (both natural and artificial).

Central Idea/Thesis Statement: One should proactively protect their skin from the harmful effects of daily UV damage.

Introduction

I. Attention Material

A. Look around the room; according to current statistics from melanomafoundation.org, 20% of us, which is approximately four of us in this room, will have skin cancer at some point in our lives.

II. Orienting Material

A. Tie to the audience: We all have different shades of skin, all beautiful in its own way. Despite all the good differences, one of the things we have in common is that we are all susceptible to the damaging effects of UV exposure (though some more than others).

B. Establish credibility: Having been so fair-skinned throughout my entire life, I have learned important lessons on UV exposure.

C. Central Idea/Thesis Statement: One should proactively protect their skin from the harmful effects of daily UV damage.

D. Preview statement: I will begin by telling you why you should protect your skin to prevent both skin cancer and premature aging. Then I will end by telling you easy ways in which to protect yourself from the damaging effect of UV exposure.

(Transition) Let’s begin by looking at the most important reason you should protect skin.

Body

I. Main point 1: Protecting your skin helps to prevent skin cancer, the most common form of cancer.

A. According to World Health Organization’s website, “skin cancer is caused primarily by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation–either from the sun or from artificial sources such as sunbeds.” (who.int).

1. This means that one should not only be cautious of the sun, but should avoid tanning beds as well.

a. For those who enjoy the look of being tanner, there are many self-tanning products available that will give you the golden look of tanned skin, but without the risk of skin cancer.

B. According to playsmartsun.org, an educational resource from the American Academy of Dermatology, skin cancer is the most preventable form of cancer.

1. With so many unpredictable things that can occur to us, skin cancer is the one cancer we have most control over.

2. We should make the wise choice to protect our skin from cancerous dangers from the sun.

C. According to AAD.org, the official website for the American Academy of Dermatology, everyone is at risk for skin cancer, no matter your ethnicity or color of skin.

1. We tend to associate those with lighter skin to be the only ones who get skin cancer, when in actuality, everyone is susceptible.

2. Skincancer.org states because of this misconception, those who have darker skin are often unaware of their skin cancer until the later, more fatal stages.

a. Such was the case of Bob Marley, who died as a result of an aggressive form of melanoma, a deadly type of skin cancer.

3. According to the mayoclinic.com, although those with naturally darker complexions are less likely to get sunburns because of the extra melanin, it does not protect against UV damage.

(Transition) Now that we know the major reason for protecting your skin, let’s look at another, if not more vain, reason.

II. Main point 2: Protecting your skin helps to protect premature aging.

A. We will all age eventually.

B. However, increased exposure to the sun can cause premature aging such as age spots and discolorations.

C. Sun exposure can also cause dryness of the skin which will lead to premature wrinkles and an overall leathery look and feel to skin.

(Transition) Not that we’ve seen reasons why we should protect our skin, let’s look at a few ways in which to do so.

III. Main point 3: There are several ways in which to protect your skin from the damaging effects of UV exposure.

A. Apply sunscreen daily to prevent UV damage that will add up over time.

1. The Center for Disease Control suggests a sunscreen of at least SPF 15 that has both UVA and UVB protection (cdc.gov)

2. There are products available to make these easy.

a. Some daily moisturizers now have sunscreen in them so you can combine some of your daily regime.

b. Also, for the ladies, there are some makeup items that have sunscreen in them as well.

B. Try not to go outside during the sun’s peak times (10 am-4 pm).

1. If you go out during these times, try to seek shade when possible.

2. Be sure to reapply sunscreen every couple of hours, sooner if you have been swimming, sweating or if you are in an area with high humidity.

3. Don’t forget to apply sunscreen on your face and head area, which is most likely to be affected by the sun.

C. Try to wear sun-protective clothing.

1. Although many of the websites I have already mentioned suggest that you wear clothes that cover up as much skin as you can, this is not usually practical for those who live in hotter climates like we do.

2. However, when you can, try to wear loose-fitting but tightly-knit fabric that will be more protective from the sun.

(Transition/Signal of end) So, let’s review.

Conclusion

I. Summary

A. Signal of end: Today we learned why one should protect his or her skin from UV damage.

B. Summary: First we learned that UV damage is the leading cause of skin cancer. Then we learned that UV exposure can lead to premature aging. Finally, we learned some simple steps in which to prevent those problems by learning to protect our skin.

II. Clincher

A. At the beginning of my speech, I mentioned approximately 4 people in the room will get skin cancer. What will you do to make sure it’s not you?

References

Skin cancer | AAD. (n.d.). Home Page | http://www.aad.org. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from http://www.aad.org/public/publications/pamphlets/sun_skin.html

American Melanoma Foundation > Staticstics. (n.d.). American Melanoma Foundation. Retrieved July 22, 2010, from http://www.melanomafoundation.org/facts/statistics.htm

Be sun smart: Protect yourself from the sun. (n.d.). Play Sun Smart of the American Academy of Dermatology. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from www.playsmartsun.org/sun_safety.html

CDC – Skin Cancer Prevention. (2010, April 6). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin/basic_info/prevention.htm

Sunburn: Riskfactors – MayoClinic.com. (2009, May 19). Mayo Clinic. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sunburn/DS00964/DSECTION=riskfactors

The Skin Cancer Foundation – Skin Cancer Facts. (n.d.). The Skin Cancer Foundation. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-facts/

The Skin Cancer Foundation – Skin Cancer and Skin of Color | Skin Cancer and Skin of Color. (n.d.). The Skin Cancer Foundation. Retrieved July 21, 2010, from http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-and-skin-of-color.html