San Diego provides perfect sunny weather this time of year. Skin protection should be on top of the list of things to consider. Skin protection is needed when you are mountain biking, skiing, pushing a stroller or doing some serious beach tanning.
To protect yourself from the sun, consider protecting yourself with sunscreen.
There are 3 simple steps to choosing the best sunscreen for your skin:
1. Your sunscreen must block ALL the harmful UVA and UVB sunrays.
Most products don’t!
Only the ingredient micro zinc oxide can block all the way through the UVA wavelength spectrum, meaning it blocks all the harmful UVA rays. All the other sunscreen medicine ingredients stop just a little short from blocking the entire UVA spectrum. Plus, micro zinc oxide is stable in the bottle while you’re waiting to use it; stays stable on your sun exposed skin and is not absorbed into your body.
I always recommend that my patients use a sunscreen that contains 5% or more micronized zinc oxide. It should be listed as an active ingredient on the back label of your product at this 5% concentration. It’s my professional opinion that all the other sunscreen ingredients fall short of the dependable and broad-spectrum protection afforded by micro zinc oxide.
My second tier choices of sunscreen ingredients are products with 5% or more micro titanium dioxide. My third tier choice is the products with Mexoryl SX (ecamsule) as in the Anthelios and Vichy brands. Be sure to pick products that contain zinc oxide, titanium dioxide or Mexoryl SX.
2. Only use fresh sunscreen products.
Sunscreen ingredients break down over time, especially if they were stored at high or low temperatures. Spring clean your sunscreen and buy a new supply every year. You never know if that tube or bottle of sunscreen from last year was left in your hot car or beach bag. You can’t be sure those old bottles are still good so regardless of the expiration date you should chuck ‘em and start fresh every spring.
3. The third and final trick is to pick the right sunscreen base for your activities and skin type.
Wet sweaty water activities need a water resistant sunscreen – period! You have to use a water-resistant base if water or sweat will be loosening or diluting the product on your skin. You also need to reapply your sunscreen when you get out of the water or dry off after sweating.
If you’re prone to acne, be sure to pick a product that’s in an oil-free base and won’t clog your pores.
The TLC Buzz 