Friday, January 2, 2009

Foundation of Skin Care (Part 4) : Sunscreen

Do you know that with the increasing global warming, the ozone layer that protects us from the harmful UV rays is depleting? Therefore, this makes even the shortest amount of time being exposed to the sun rays very damaging to our skin. The solution? Always remember to apply sunscreen after you moisturize. Luckily, there are some moisturizers which include sun protection in them, thus making them very convenient and a real time saver.

Everyday exposure to the UV radiation can cause sun damage to the skin such as sunburn, photoaging and increases the risk of skin cancer. This sun damage usually happen beneath the skin surface and happens so slowly that rarely you’ll notice until it is too late. Besides, sun damage can happen even if you are not directly under the sunlight. Even indirect sunlight such as reflection from the ground, snow, water, etc. also adds up over the years and can cause wrinkles and dark spots. So the next time you see some dark spot appearing on your face, think agaib whether you have really been protecting them from the sun rays.

Sunscreen should not be taken lightly but should be make as a compulsory daily routine. As mentioned before, sun damage may not be noticeable in the early stage and its effect is cumulative. Some experts recommend you use sunblock with UVB protection of at least SPF 15, and also include UVA protection with titanium dioxide, zinc oxide or avobenzone.

Do you know that fair skin people are more susceptible to sunburn compared to darker skin tones? The reason is because dark skin has a natural SPF of about 8. Also, childrens and infants have higher risk of getting a sun burn due to their thin and sensitive skin.

The term SPF is quite common nowadays, but do you know what does it indicates? Well, SPF stands for “Sun Protection Factor” for UVB rays. The SPF number is the number to indicate the time of delay for sunburn to happen. For example, if a person takes about 20 minutes to get sunburn and had applied sunscreen with SPF30, the total time a person can be protected from the damaging sun rays is as calculated below:

30(SPF) x 20 minutes (time taken for sunburn) = 600 minutes
Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch Sunblock, SPF-85 is one of the sunblock that I found with the highest SPF number for longer protection under the sun. It is smooth, soft and can be easily applied on face and body area.

So, make sure you do some calculations to estimate the number of SPF required for full protection. Also, areas such as back of the knee or leg, top of the feet and hand and back of the neck are some of the places which are commonly forgoten to be applied with sunblock. So put them in your check list especially if you plan a day out under the sun:)

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