A Love Affair with the Sun
Modern Tips for Everyday Sun Care
“It kisses you with color,” reads a vintage Bain de Soleil ad in Harper’s Bazaar. There’s no denying it – that sun-kissed, just-back-from-St-Tropez look is hard to beat. After all, don’t we all have a little love affair with the sun?
These retro marketing messages permeated throughout our culture in the 1960s, 70s, 80s, and beyond. “You’d look better with a tan!” headlines screamed. My maternal grandmother, Trudy, would sit out in her backyard “in a snowstorm” in her bathing suit with baby oil on and reflectors (or so I’m told). A sign of the times!
We know a little more now about the impacts of sun exposure. Even so, I have to admit, my adherence to responsible sun care didn’t really kick in until I hit 27 (I’m 33 now). Up until that point in my life, I loosely “wore sunscreen,” but it certainly wasn’t every day, and absolutely not all over my body. I do know my mom applied it on me as a kid. I mean, how could I forget?! Standing there impatiently, rolling my eyes – the only thing between me and a glorious beach day was this dreaded, routine application of white gunk! As usual, Mom, you were right! 💛
Do any of these sound familiar?!
Source: healthline
Myth 1: You need a base tan.
We’ve been hearing this for years. Heading some place sunny on vacation? “Oh, you need a base tan so you don’t burn.” Turns out, any form of a tan is a sign of sun damage. Yikes. According to Florida-based Dermatologist Dr. Madeliene Gainers: “The skin appears darker because it redistributes melanin in an effort to protect itself.”
Myth 2: Tanning is necessary for vitamin D.
There are plenty of ways to meet our vitamin D needs that don’t involve exposing our skin to harmful amounts of sun. The right diet and supplements will do the trick.
Myth 3: People with darker skin don’t need to worry about using sunscreen.
“Although the extra melanin in darker skin offers some protection, it doesn’t block all the ultraviolet (UV) radiation,” says Dr. Michael Lin, founder of Dr. Lin Skincare Institute.
Myth 4: Sun or tanning-bed exposure is the only way to achieve a healthy glow.
Not true! The self-tanner market (even non-toxic) is booming, as are spray tan salons, and the quality these days is top-notch.
Myth 5: Only UVB rays are harmful.
There are two different types of UV rays: UVA and UVB rays. UVB rays get the most attention as the culprit for sunburn and skin cancer, but UVA rays aren’t great either. UVA is associated with photoaging (think: wrinkling! irregular skin texture!).
Myth 6: Most skin cancers are no big deal.
“One in five Americans across all ethnicities will get skin cancer,” Grossman says. And not all of those people will survive. “One person dies from skin cancer every hour in the United States.” 😳
Myth 7: As long as you don’t burn, tanning is safe.
In case it wasn’t already clear — any tan whatsoever can set you up for future skin problems.
“Acute sunburns are painful and and may increase the risk of melanoma,” Lin says. “But tanning can cause photoaging and predispose you to skin cancer.”
So, for those of us in a love affair with the sun (myself included), below are the sun protection “commandments” we can try our best to be diligent about.
SPF: Sun Protection Factor. The American Academy of Dermatology recommends that we wear a minimum sun protection factor (SPF) of 30 every single day. Even if we do that, apparently many of us are still skimping on ounces! “When I show people what 1 ounce of product is, which is what should cover you in a tank top and shorts or bathing suit, they always laugh and say they probably use less than that for an entire day outside,” says Dr. Karyn Grossman of Grossman Dermatology in LA and NYC. Because many of us don’t use enough to begin with, she recommends leveling up to SPF 50.
After Getting Wet, Reapply. Apparently, per Grossman, “waterproof” sunscreen doesn’t really exist – only water-resistant sunblock that still needs to be reapplied once your skin has gotten wet (think: swimming, sweating, etc).
Wear Sun Protective Clothing. Wide brimmed hats! Sunglasses! Long sleeves! Oh my!
Be Especially Careful from 10am-2pm. Naturally, from 10am-2pm, when it’s most enticing to be outside, ultraviolet rays from the sun are most intense. Seek shade during this window! Or, if you can’t, lather up with SPF and wear your wide-brimmed hat, sunglasses, and protective layers.
The problem with the SPF mandate is that not all sunscreens are created equally. There’s a lot of chatter around mineral vs. chemical sunscreens and the verdict is that mineral sunscreen is the safer choice. Mineral sunscreens use zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide as their active ingredient(s), which sit on the skin’s surface to deflect rays and creates a physical barrier between your skin and the sun. Chemical sunscreens, on the other hand, penetrate the skin, which absorbs and releases the sun’s UV rays back into the environment. Common ingredients in chemical sunscreen include oxybenzone, dioxybenzone, avobenzone, octocrylene, homosalate, octinoxate, among others. According to EWG, the FDA reviewed sixteen ingredients in sunscreen and reported that only two of them — zinc oxide and titanium dioxide (the two used in mineral sunscreens) — were “generally recognized as safe and effective.”
Historically, chemical sunscreen formulas have been easier to sink into skin than mineral, but that’s not true anymore. The technology in mineral sunscreens has improved drastically in recent years, allowing the better-for-us formulas to melt easily into any skin type and tone. The active ingredients in chemical sunscreens, unfortunately, include known and probable carcinogens as well as hormone disruptors that studies have shown are systemically absorbed into our bodies. If you see an active ingredient listed on your sunscreen other than zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, it’s a chemical sunscreen and should be avoided.
Each year, EWG publishes a thorough Guide to Sunscreen. A handy search bar at the top lets you punch in the brand you currently use to see if it checks out by their standards (the strictest around). You can also search “EWG verified” to discover mineral- based formulas that pass their verification test. Truth be told, some clean, mineral-based sunscreen formulas can be pretty intolerable – coating your skin with that icky white glaze. If you’ve tried non-toxic mineral sunscreens, you know what I mean. But, as mentioned above, the technology has come a loooong way. I’ve rounded up a few of the friendliest formulas on EWG’s Verified list here1 ranked in no particular order (along with more EWG approved SPFs here). I’ve also been wearing Linné Botanicals Protect daily since it arrived two weeks ago and give it five (out of five) stars.
Sidenote, for new moms, you’ve probably wondered when to start putting sunscreen on your baby. According to Consumer Reports, the FDA and American Academy of Dermatology recommend avoiding sunscreen use on infants under six months old and, instead, keeping them covered and shaded. Their skin is very sensitive and, while they’re highly susceptible to UV rays, they are also more likely to get a rash or react adversely to sunscreen ingredients. I’m about to start putting it on Elsie, who turns six months on June 18th(!), and planning to use Baby Mineral Sunscreen Cream - SPF 40 from Badger (they make a kids version too).
Now that we have SPF covered, next up are… hats. But you know what? This post is a little long as it is. So, I’ll save that for next week. Expect a quality edit of the best sun hats your money can buy.
With that – thank you for reading! Wishing you a happy, Sun-day (get it?!)! What are your favorite mineral SPFs?! Let’s add them to the list or drop them in the chat!
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Gorgeous writing, and super informative and fun to read. Thanks Lacey, I love having you on team health and beauty!
Love this. How about a section on Fake sun tanning lotions. Il Makiage is heavily promoting one on insta and FB. Any good? Safe to use? Xoxox