Protect Your Skin From The Sun.
Are you putting on your sunscreen correctly? If not, you’re probably not getting much protection at all.
According to Forbes Health, researchers have found that rubbing sunscreen into your skin minimizes its ability to protect you from the harmful rays of the sun! That’s because rubbing it in makes the cream sink into your sweat glands and the creases in your skin.
What’s the proper way to apply sunscreen? Dr. Rachel Haywood, the lead scientist on the study, says smoothing it on - and letting it dry in a thin, white film - offers the best protection. Here are some other sun-safety tips she suggests:
- If you MUST be outside during the peak hours of 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., always use a sunscreen with at least an SPF 15.
- Keep covered up. Wear airy clothes, a hat and sunglasses.
But just because you’re under an umbrella or in the shade, don’t think you’re safe from the sun. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, if it's not completely black outside, there's enough light to damage skin.
So here are some common summer examples and how much sun protection they provide.
- Being Buried in Sand – is like wearing a sunscreen with SPF 30. But sand reflects UV rays, so exposed skin may burn faster than usual.
- Under a beach umbrella only gives you the protection of SPF 15. So you need sunscreen too.
- Your white T-shirt is only SPF 4. Darker colors provide a higher SPF.
- And yes you can get sun damage through a car window. Glass blocks UVB, but not UVA, light.
