Top 4 Ways to Protect Yourself in the Sun

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As the weather is heating up and most of us will be taking advantage of the warmer weather by spending more time outdoors or jetting off to somewhere exciting, I thought I would do a little post on protecting yourself in the sun. Exposure to the sun is essential for producing vitamin D in your body. Vitamin D is essential for absorbing calcium, keeping our bones healthy, and for protecting against chronic diseases later in life. 

Prolonged sun exposure can be damaging to your skin, this is down to UVA and UVB rays, which can cause premature aging of the skin, wrinkles, and skin cancer. UVB rays cause sunburn and can lead to skin cancer, whilst UVA rays (present even on cloudy days) penetrate deep below the skin, causing premature ageing and are also linked to melanoma. The amount of damage from UV exposure depends on the strength of the light, the length of exposure and whether the skin is protected. It is especially important to be careful in the sun if you burn easily or spend a lot of time outdoors.

 

The 4 main elements for good sun protection:

1. Applying sunscreen. We all know this one, but it has to be said; sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen!! A sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15 should be used, but for the fairer ladies who burn easily should go for a higher SPF factor. It is important for darker skin ladies to apply suntan lotion as well. Pigmentation on darker skin tones does protect you to some extent, but not completely. Apply sunscreen to all exposed areas of your body and reapply every 2-3 hours, even on cloudy days, and after swimming or sweating. Take precautions even when the sun isn't shining brightly as you are still exposed to UV rays.
2. Sit in the shade. Take frequent breaks from the sun by going indoors or moving into the shade. This is especially important between 10:00am  and 16:00pm when the sun is at it's strongest.
3. Cover up. Wear a hat and sunglasses which is ideal for protecting your eyes, ears, nose, forehead, neck and scalp. Wear longer looser clothing will help reduce the chances of getting sun burnt.
4. Avoid sun beds and sunbathing. Tanning beds still use UV light which can cause skin cancer and make your skin age faster. If you want to look like you’ve been in the sun,  consider using a self-tanning lotion. There are various types of self-tanning products to suit your preference and can be picked up at any cosmetics store. If you are worried about doing it yourself and messing it up, there is always the option of getting it done professionally in a salon.

If you would like any more info or if you want to share anything please feel free to comment below.

xSx