Sun Safety
With the new season comes the wonderful feeling of warm rays on our faces, but it’s important to practice sun safety. According to the American Cancer Society, melanoma, one of the most dangerous cancers, will account for over 73,000 cases of cancer this year. While frolicking in the sun, make sure to protect your skin as much as possible by using sunscreen and hats.
Active ingredients that we recommend are zinc oxide and titanium dioxide (which are known as physical sunscreens). The best part about physical sunscreen is that it blocks the sun’s UV rays, and reflects off the skin like a mirror. According to Dr. Doris J. Day, these two ingredients are not irritating because they are not absorbed into the skin. However, physical sunscreens often leave a white residue on the skin, which can be aesthetically displeasing.
Imagine our surprise when we came across a sunscreen brand that utilized both zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, but managed to avoid the white residue! What we love about biodegradable Rubber Ducky sunscreen is that it uses iron oxides to blend into the skin seamlessly. For you ladies out there, its appearance reminds us of a sunscreen and foundation mix. Since testing it out for almost a year, it has been our go-to sunscreen, especially because it has never made us feel oily even on hot summer days. However, we know that there are a ton of great brands out there, so stay tuned for a future sunscreen guide!
10 tips for sun safety:
- Wear sunscreen daily
- Make sure to apply at least SPF 30 all over
- Reapply sunscreen often if you venture outdoors
- Keep your favorite zinc oxide or titanium dioxide sunscreen in your purse
- Try to stay out of the sun between 10 am-3 pm (when the sun’s rays are hottest)
- Don’t forget to apply sunscreen on your lips, jawline, ears, and toes (often neglected spots)
- Wear a UPF50 hat to protect your face and neck: we purchased ours here
- Wear sunglasses that protect against UV rays
- Be on the lookout for moles that change in shape (and talk to your dermatologist)
- Tint your car if possible to help block UV rays
For more information about sun safety, we recommend these sites:
http://www.melanomafoundation.org/prevention/sun.htm
http://www.skincancer.org/news/sunscreen
http://www.justaboutskin.com/2015/05/skin-cancer-awareness/
What do you do to be more diligent about sun safety? Let us know in the comments below!
Great tips! Thanks for the information.
What I do for myself and family to protect against sunburn is to use the mineral make-up foundations I create (the base is titanium dioxide)in the early summer. Since we live in the Pacific Northwest and we are at risk for Vitamin D deficiency, my goal is to get plenty of safe sun exposure. So I use the mineral foundation while our skin is adjusting to the summer sun and then gradually spend more time without it as the summer progresses… Thanks again for the great post!
Thanks so much for sharing Vanessa! Great way to help with sun safety 🙂
Great tips! Number 7 is new to me, thanks for sharing.