The Do’s & Don’ts of Ingredients in Sunscreen
Alright y’all, it’s the last full week of Skin Cancer Awareness month and you know we had to talk about what’s in your sunscreen (that you better be lathering on daily!)
ICYMI, we chatted last week about WHY you need to wear sunscreen daily, so if you missed that, go back and read it here. Basically, if you want to be the youngest looking person in your retirement home, wear it!
“Okay Linley, that’s all well and good, but what kind of sunscreen should I wear?”
I’m glad you asked, not all sunscreens are created equal and there are 2 kinds of sunscreens - physical and chemical. Basically, chemical is no good. Chemical sunscreen absorbs the rays vs. making them bounce off of you, which can obviously be very harmful to your body. You always want a physical sunscreen. Physical sunscreen bounces the UV rays off your skin, which is your best option. And while we are on the topic of equality of sunscreens, makeup is not a sunscreen. It’s a thinned out version which isn’t as strong in blocking UV rays off your skin. SPF 15 in your foundation is not enough protection for your previous skin!
The number in your SPF refers to the about of protection against UVA and UVB rays. Think of it this way, you could apply SPF 75 extremely thinly on your skin and still get burnt like toast OR apply SPF 30 with the correct amount to cover your skin and be protected! Keep in mind though, regardless of how you apply your sunscreen after 40 - 80 minutes you’ll need to reapply.
Lastly, let’s chat about ingredients in sunscreens. There are 3 big no’s when it comes to sunscreen ingredients: Oxybenzone, Avobenzone and Octinoxate are extremely harmful chemicals to your body. They can irritate your skin and really should be avoided. What should you look for in sunscreen? Titanium dioxide and Zinc oxide are the best to make sure are in your sunscreen. They’re the safest for UVA and UVB rays and they provide the best protection.
Remember, lather up, reapply and protect that gorgeous skin of yours!
