What Is Sun Protection & Why Is Using Sunscreen Important?

Sun is something that every one of us has to face every day of our lives. While it is so important for life, frequent exposure to sunlight can be damaging to your skin. This is why learning about sun damage, sun protection and the use of sunscreen is important.

Sunlight contains many harmful rays, like UVA and UVB, that can damage your skin and lead to it prematurely ageing. Use of sun protection saves us from this damage. There are different types of sun protection and all of the information about this can be found in this section.

First, we are going to give you a brief introduction about this section.

What Is The History Of Sunscreen?

Sun protection has always been of importance. History shows that people used topical sunscreen in ancient times.Evidence of this has been recovered from some ancient Egyptian tombs and the ingredients they used is still being researched.

When Was Modern Sunscreen Invented?

There are four different people who have claimed to be the inventor of sunscreen, but none of them has been confirmed yet. However, the modern sunblock or sunscreen was invented in the 1930s. The SPF system too was introduced back in those days. The SPF number of a sunscreen indicates its ability to protect the skin. The higher the SPF number, the higher the amount of sun protection.

Sunscreen Vs. Sunblock

There is a difference between sunscreen and sunblock. Sunscreen involves the use of organic ingredients that absorb harmful rays and dissipate their energy after breaking. Sunblock is thicker and uses an inorganic component as well. It reflects sunrays before they can reach the skin and, hence, they are said to be more effective. However, both sunscreens and sunblocks are usually considered together when we talk about sun protection.

Why Is Sunscreen Important For Your Skin?

You see the recommendations to wear sunscreen many times, especially during the summer. But the question is, why is sunscreen important?

Many of us tend to ignore this important step of skincare. The reason is that most people are unaware of how sun damage occurs and how sunscreen protects us. Sunscreen is important because:

• There are UV rays in sunlight that damage your skin cells
• UV rays have the ability to cause premature ageing

If you think that sunscreen is unimportant because you have never experienced sunburn, tanning or damage, you are wrong. The damage keeps occurring at a micro level and you will only become aware of this once it gets out of hand or maybe during a visit to your dermatologist. So it is better to take care of your skin before you hear the bad news.

Did you know that 85% of skin damage occurs because of the sun? This includes ageing, wrinkles, sagging, spots and hyperpigmentation. All of this is the result of careless exposure to the sun.

So What Should You Do?

Taking measures to protect your skin is what you can do. If you are not into skin care regimes, sunscreen application is the minimum that you can do. Whenever you plan to leave your home make sure you apply some sunscreen. It is a long-term investment that you will benefit from and appreciate when you are older.

Another misconception is that sunscreen is only needed on sunny days. This is totally wrong. Even when there is no visible sun, there are still some invisible, harmful sunrays.

What Products Should You Buy?

People always ask this question about anti-ageing products. You know what is the best anti-ageing product for you? Your sunscreen! It is where your anti-ageing regime should start. The first product should be a vitamin c serum (remember serums before creams) followed by a sunscreen. If you are on a budget, just buy the sunscreen. If you still have some money left, buy a vitamin C serum. All those fancy expensive moisturisers are not needed. You can replace them with some cheaper, more effective options.

Sunscreen is worth the investment as it is going to pay you back many times over. If you decide to give up on your sunscreen and buy other fancy products instead, you are going to regret it.

Once sun damage has occurred, reversing it is your worst nightmare. It will not be as easy as preventing the damage, and will cost you money and time. There are many expensive treatments available that can reverse sun damage to quite a noticeable extent, but are they worth it when you can prevent this damage in the first place? Certainly not!

So add sunscreen to your daily skincare today and experience its amazing benefits.