IMPORTANCE OF SUNSCREEN

HARMFUL EFFECTS OF THE SUN ON THE SKIN

Sun is one of the major necessities and essential parts of nature. On the one hand, it provides us sunlight which helps plant to perform photosynthesis, and is also provide solar energy through which human can make electricity but on the other hand, its harmful rays can cause skin damage like wrinkles, burning of skin, eye damage, and skin cancers.

Our skin is the largest organ of our body and it's composed of three layers. It protects our internal body organs from harmful microbes, holds body fluids, and prevents dehydration. As our skin is playing major roles for us and our health we must protect our skin from getting damaged as well. Our face skin is delicate and it gets affected when it comes in contact with the sun and its harmful rays. One of the key products to protect our skin from getting damaged is to apply sunscreen.

SUNSCREEN AND ITS IMPORTANCE

Sunscreen doesn't only protect our skin from harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun but it also acts as an anti-aging product. Sunscreen works by acting as a barrier that either reflects or absorbs the harmful rays from the sun. The ingredients present in sunscreen provide protection against harmful sun rays.

HARMFUL SUNRAYS OR ULTRAVIOLET RAYS:

Ultraviolet rays are harmful non-ionizing radiations that come from the sun and other artificial light sources that ionize the atom. There are three types of ultraviolet rays which are classified on the basis of their frequencies and wavelength UVA, UVB, and UVC. Out of these three, only UVA and UVB are able to reach the earth's surface while UVC gets absorbed. UVA and UVB are majorly responsible for causing skin cancer and sunburn. Sunscreen minimizes the risk of skin cancer and other deadly skin conditions that occur due to exposure to ultraviolet rays. It doesn’t only protect your skin but it also makes it better and healthier.

WHEN TO APPLY SUNSCREEN:

The most asked question by dermatologists to their patients is if they wear sunscreen daily and if they don’t, then the first thing prescribed by the dermatologist is the sunscreen.

No matter what, if you are staying at home or going outside, dermatologists emphasize over daily wearing of sunscreen over the skin of your face, hand, neck, feet, and ears. The minerals and chemicals present in sunscreen prevent sunrays from penetrating or absorbing into the skin. It is recommended by the FDA to wear broad-spectrum sunscreen daily having higher SPF to protect your skin from ultraviolet rays coming from the sun so that you can have healthy skin.

IS SUNSCREEN OR SUNBLOCK IS SAME:

Sunscreen, also known as Sunblock, which defined as its ability to block the sun's harmful rays. The sun can produce harmful rays which can cause sunburn and other skin problems, these problems if not treated immediately can cause skin cancers.

There are different perspectives regarding how much and when to apply sunscreen. The most authentic way to apply sunscreen is right after washing your face in the morning and re-applying it again and again after 2-3 hours as its ability to protect our skin gets low over time.

Sunscreen comes in different Sun Protection Factors (SPFs) which represent the sunrays blocking ability of a sunscreen. The minimum recommended SPF for daily use is 30 and the maximum 100. SPF 100 is able to protect the skin from 98-99 percent of ultraviolet B rays.

PROPER WAY OF SUNSCREEN APPLICATION:

People all around the world wear sunscreens according to their convenience and comfort but if you're not applying it in the correct way then sunscreen will not provide you a proper protection from ultraviolet rays. The most authentic way to apply sunscreen is right after washing your face in the morning and re-applying it again and again after 2-3 hours as its ability to protect our skin gets low over time.

OR

· It is important to shake the bottle or container of your sunscreen before applying it so that all the ingredients can get mixed thoroughly.

· Apply to shake the bottle well, take out sunscreen on your three fingers, and dab your fingers on your face to apply sunscreen all over your face.

· When your face's surface gets covered, rub it properly throughout it.

· After applying it on your face don’t forget to apply it to all the parts of your body that are exposed to the sun like your neck, ears, hands, legs, shoulders, and back.

· Reapply it after every two hours so that no ultraviolet rays get into your skin.

DIFFERENT SUNSCREEN FOR DIFFERENT SKIN TYPES:

The skin of people varies throughout the world therefore it is important to select the sunscreen according to your skin type. Applying mild sunscreen with moderate SPF is recommended to avoid any reaction afterward. For oily skin type, it's recommended to apply gel-based sunscreen so it will not leave sweat or oily over the skin after applying it, it's also important to buy a comedogenic sunscreen so that it will not block the pores of the skin. The measure issue arises when your skin is acne-prone, for acne-prone skin it is wise to ask a dermatologist to suggest a sunscreen that suits best your skin type as applying sunscreen with opposite ingredients and formula will make your skin even worse. For dry skin, sunscreen that contains a hydrating substance is preferred.

INGREDIENTS IN SUNSCREEN:

Sunscreen contains different types of minerals and chemicals out of which two important ingredients are zinc oxide and titanium oxide which reflects the sun rays away from the skin. The avobenzone and octocrylene present in sunscreen act as filters and neutralize and absorb the UV rays. The sunscreen containing all of these major ingredients is referred to as broad-spectrum sunscreen.

DO PEOPLE WITH DARKER SKIN TONES NEED SUNSCREEN

There is a myth regarding the importance of sunscreen for darker skin tones that people with darker skin tones do not need sunscreen. Indeed, melanin which is a natural pigment and available excessively in the skin of people having darker skin tone provides natural protection from the sun rays but it is not powerful enough to block all the harmful rays. The sunscreen is equally important for every skin tone.

MYTHS ABOUT THE SUNSCREEN

1. Wearing sunscreen is not important if you are staying indoors: People think that wearing sunscreen is only important when you are going outside otherwise it is okay not to wear sunscreen indoors.

2. Wearing sunscreen is not important if the weather is cloudy: In cloudy weather, there is no sun, or it hides behind the clouds so people think that it's okay to not wear sunscreen when the weather is cloudy.

3. Broad spectrum sunscreen or sunscreen with high SPF doesn’t require re-application: It is compulsory to re-apply the sunscreen every 2-3 hours.

4. Wearing sunscreen is not important in winter as there is no sun in winter: The Sun usually doesn’t shine as much in winter so people think that it's okay to not wear sunscreen in winter.

5. Sunscreen prevents the absorption of vitamin D from the sun: It is a very common myth that sunscreen can block the absorption of vitamin D into your skin.

ANTI-AGING BENEFIT OF SUNSCREEN

One of the major causes of early aging of your skin is due to exposure of the skin to harmful UV rays of the sun which can lead to the appearance of wrinkles, smile lines, dark spots, and skin sagging. However, sunscreen with a broader sun protection factor can prevent the early aging of your skin as the minerals present in it act as an anti-aging agent. Sunscreen acts as a barrier that prevents the rays from getting into the skin and causing aging. The agents present in sunscreen also avoid the appearance of dark and age spots on your skin.

SUNSCREEN AS A SKIN CANCER PROTECTOR:

UVA and UVB are the major causes of skin cancer nowadays as they get into our skin ionize the atoms present in our skin and elicit the cancer cell-producing reaction. The sunscreen acts as a barrier and shield which prevents the UVA and UVB from getting into the skin and elicits the cancer cell-producing reaction. Sunscreen also prevents DNA damage and mutation from happening in our skin cells so that our skin cells remain healthy.

SUNSCREEN- A LIFE SAVIOUR:

We can call sunscreen a life savior as it doesn’t only protect our skin from aging, dark spots, wrinkles, and sunburns but it also prevents mutation in our skin cells which in turn prevents skin cancer from happening. Just by applying it regularly and properly, we can protect ourselves from hazardous skin conditions which will cost us a huge amount in the treatment and medications. By applying it to our skin we are providing a barrier from sun rays. We should have sunscreen along with us every time we stay indoors or go out for a picnic. It should be a part of our morning skin routine and lifestyle so that our skin can remain healthy and bright.