As is known, the action of sunlight contributes not only to an attractive tan and saturation of the body with vitamin D, but also can harm our health. Most of all from the ultraviolet rays our skin suffers, under the influence of which it is overdried, pigment spots, moles, erythemas, wrinkles and even cancerous growths are formed on it. Therefore, one of the most important means for skin care, especially in the warm season, when the sun is most active, is sunscreen.
How to choose sunscreen?
The most vulnerable to the action of sunlight is the skin of the face, so first of all you should provide protection to it. Sunscreen provides protection of the skin from harmful UV radiation, promotes moisture retention in it, prevents aging and serves as a prevention of skin cancer . Modern sunscreens can be used as a make-up base, which is convenient and practical.
UV radiation, negatively affecting the skin condition, is divided into two types:
- UVA rays - cause skin aging, are able to destroy collagen and elastin, penetrate deeply even through thin clothes and glass.
- UVB rays - cause redness, burns and malignant tumors, can not penetrate through glass and clothing.
The effect of UVB rays becomes noticeable immediately after being in the open sun as redness, irritation and burns, and UVA radiation produces a cumulative effect, and a negative result can be seen after some (dried skin, pigment spots, etc.).
When choosing a sunscreen, first of all, you should focus on the level of its protective power. As a rule, it is indicated on the packaging of the remedy by the abbreviation SPF and the number. The higher the number, the higher the level of protection. Blonde women with sensitive light skin, which quickly burns in the sun, it is recommended to use sunscreens with the highest degree of protection - SPF 40-50 (sunscreen with SPF 100 does not exist). Those who have skin dark, it is enough to apply sunscreen with SPF 15-30.
However, the SPF-index shows how much the cream protects only from UVB radiation, and it is much more difficult to evaluate the protection from UVA rays. For this, different methods of definition are used with their notation:
- IPD - the maximum value is 90, and this indicates that the skin is protected from UVA-rays by 90%.
- PPD - here the maximum indicator is 42, and this means that the skin penetrates 42% less rays of this type.
- PA - the degree of protection, which is expressed by the signs "+", "++" and "+++".
If staying in the sun is associated with bathing, it is desirable to choose a means with a water repellent effect. When dry and flabby skin is better to use a moisturizing sunscreen with herbal extracts and vitamins.
It is worth considering that any sunscreen is effective only the first couple of hours after application. Therefore, the cream layer needs to be renewed every two hours, and when bathing and sweating it is even more common.
Which sunscreen is better?
You can choose the best sunscreen, considering the skin features and the time spent in the sun. As for brands of products, the following companies have proven themselves to be effective and quality sunscreen manufacturers:
- Clinique (USA);
- Mirra (Russia);
- Avene (France);
- Vichy (France);
- Oriflame (Sweden);
- Clean line (Russia);
- Nivea (Germany);
- Holy Land (Israel);
- L'Oreal (France);
- SkinTech (Spain) and others.