UV Rays & Sunscreen

Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash

Assalamualaikum and Hi my dear readers! It has been so long since I updated my blog. There are a bunch of things that need to be done during my final year at the university :( But, I have promised myself to spend a little time on my blog during this semester break. I am still trying to improve my blog appearance *and still struggling with the coding section but we're getting there, we're getting there. Despite these issues (which I apologise for), today, I am going to share about one of the beauty secrets to aging gracefully: WEAR YOUR SUNSCREEN! :D

Why do we need sunscreen?

Is sunlight so bad for our skin?

Should we totally avoid sunlight?

Well, let's dive deeper into the topic!

The main reason for using sunscreen is to protect our skin from ultraviolet (UV) radiation. UV radiation is one of seven types of electromagnetic waves. It is emitted by the sun and present in sunlight. There are three types of UV radiation or UV rays: UVA, UVB, and UVC. UVA has the longest wavelength while UVC has the shortest wavelength. Because of that, only UVA and a small amount of UVB are present in sunlight. I am going to explain briefly how these rays (UVA & UVB) affect our skin.

UVA

Since UVA has the longest wavelength, it could penetrate deeply into our skin and leave some effects on it. The major effect of UVA is photoaging as high exposure to UVA could damage the collagen fibres and cause the formation of premature wrinkles. Other than that, the damaging effect from UVA also contributes to skin cancer.

UVB

UVB only presents in small amounts but could also affect our skin. The major effect of high exposure to UVB is skin burning. Yes, sunburn occurs because of UVB. And compared to UVA, UVB contributes higher to the formation of skin cancer.

Those are some factors why you need to get your sunscreen now. And I'm also gonna tell you what are we looking for in an effective sunscreen.

Sun protection factor (SPF) is a sunscreen component that protects against UVB. SPF 30 - SPF 50 is commonly recommended by dermatologists. If you want to get a sunscreen with SPF 30, you could measure how long you can be exposed to the sunlight before getting burnt by a simple calculation:

30 × 100 = 300 mins.

But remember, even if it could protect you for 300 mins, you still need to reapply it at least every two hours because there are still some factors that can reduce the effectiveness of sunscreen (layer thickness, sweat, makeup, etc.).

To protect against UVA, you need to find broad-spectrum sunscreens. There is no specific indicator for this type of sunscreen yet. But, this sunscreen could be indicated by the PA+++ label on the packaging.

We're almost done! Now, how to find a suitable sunscreen for your skin type? There are two types of sunscreen available, which are chemical and physical sunscreen.

Chemical/Organic Sunscreen

It works by absorbing the UV rays and dissipating them in form of heat. I've heard chemical sunscreen tends to irritate our eyes. I don't do further research about this. But from my experience, both sunscreens always cause a burning effect on my eyes, maybe just try to not let it get into your eyes.

Always bear this in your mind: Ingredients don't lie ;) The best way to identify chemical sunscreen is by reading the ingredients and analysing whether it could irritate our eyes or trigger our skin type. Some familiar ingredients in chemical sunscreen are oxybenzone and tinosorb.

Physical/Mineral/Inorganic Sunscreen

This type of sunscreen acts like a shield on top of our skin by reflecting the UV rays. The familiar ingredients in physical sunscreen are zinc oxide and titanium oxide. However, the microparticle of zinc oxide tends to leave a white cast on our face.

There are some tips for choosing the best sunscreen according to your skin type:

Oily or acne-prone skin: Gel-based sunscreen or 'Non-comedogenic' labelled sunscreen.

Dry skin: Moisturiser-form sunscreen

Sensitive skin: 'Hypoallergenic' labelled sunscreen

There you go! You can now get your sunscreen :)

P.S. You can apply vitamin C serum before applying sunscreen. It will enhance its protection against UV rays while getting treatment benefits from vit. C ;)

I think that's all for today. Bye! :)