During lockdown most of us are at home. We are all staying in a lot more so there’s no need for sunscreen, right? Wrong?

Even if you predominantly live your life indoors you still need to protect your skin from sun/day light.

Sunscreen should really be called ‘Daylight Protection’ or ‘Light Protection’ because it protects you from the light you’re exposed to between sunrise and sunset. Even when it’s snowing, raining or cloudy, daylight still gets through and is harmful to our skin.

Daylight exposes us to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. UVA and UVB.

UVA (Ageing) rays are responsible for long-term skin damage and can cause skin cancer.

• UVA rays cannot be felt. Approximately the same strength all year, they penetrate through windows. If you are near a window of any building or mode of transport, UVA rays can still reach you. Sunbeds give out greater doses of UV radiation.
• UVA rays penetrate to the deep layer of our skin, the Dermis, where proteins called collagen and elastin are found. As we get older there is a natural depletion of these proteins causing sagging and wrinkles. UVA rays accelerates this ageing by breaking down these proteins.

UVB (Burning) rays are responsible for burning and can cause skin cancer.

• UVB rays do not penetrate windows, they damage your skin when you are outside. They are absorbed by the outer layer of the skin, the epidermis, causing a suntan or sunburn.
• You can feel the effects of UVB rays through sunburn.

Three tips for protecting your skin and slowing the signs of ageing skin:

1. Cover up daily. Use a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of 30+ with a UVA 5-Star rating and UVB protection. Preferably one that contains Titanium Dioxide and/or Zinc Oxide which reflects UV rays away from the surface of the skin. Use SPF as your moisturizer and re-apply regularly.
2. Drink plenty of water to keep skin cells hydrated, making them nice and plump which in turn makes the skin look younger.
3. Keep up a good skin care routine. Make it a life-time commitment and not just in the summer or a one off. (e.g. cleanse, tone and moisturise). Your skin will need time and a consistent routine to give it the nourishment it needs to look its best. Therefore, a daily skin care routine is important!

Here are a couple of great examples to visibly show you the signs of how sun and day light exposure damages our skin over time.

This 69-year-old man was a truck driver for 28 years. The effects of sun exposure to the left side of his face whilst driving his truck is clearly visible compared to the right side of his face which would have been in the shade.

(This man’s case was first presented in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2012).

At the time this photo was taken (by the Department of Plastic Surgery at Case Western Reserve University) these twins aged 52 shows the twin on the left is a shade lover verses the twin on the right who is a sun worshipper.

If you want to find out more on UV radiation and your skin or have any questions, please get in touch (info@skinhappy.co.uk) and we can discuss it further.

You can also find more information from this website: https://www.skincancer.org/risk-factors/uv-radiation/

Please do continue to stay safe and well during these uncertain times. I hope I can see you all again very soon.

Take Care

Tina