Tag Archive for: Sunscreen

Summer Sun Protection 101: Choosing The Right SPF

Summer Sun Protection: Choosing The Right Sunscreen

It’s summer time and with the longer days and much-anticipated sunshine comes the need for protecting your skin from sun damage. One of the easiest to do that is by using a sunscreen with the right amount of SPF, and the options seem endless. Here’s how to choose the right sun protection for your skin.

SPF: What It Means and Why It Matters

We hear the acronym ‘SPF’ a lot at this time of year, but do you really understand what it means and how the SPF rating of your sun protection can determine how well your skin is protected from sun damage?

SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor and is a relative measure of how a product will protect you from UV radiation (Predominantly UVB rays unless otherwise specified on the label). Products generally range form low SPF of 15 to much higher rating of up to 100 SPF.

While a Higher Spf Offers an Increase in Sun Protection, It’s Not Always a Much as You Might Think

  • SPF 15 will block approximately 93% of UVB rays.
  • SPF 30 will block approximately 97% of UVB rays
  • SPF 50 will block approximately 98% of UVB rays
  • SPF 100 will block approximately 99% of UVB rays

Broad Spectrum Sun Protection is Best

For UVA and UVB protection, look for a suncreen that states it is broad spectrum. Mineral sunblocks that contain a high amount of zinc oxide, when applied correctly, offer excellent broad spectrum sun protection. Elta MD is just one example of a reputable brand that carries mineral-based, broad spectrum sunblocks.

If you’ve avoided mineral-based sunblocks out of fear that they will leave your skin looking ashy or covered in white streats, CBC offers this list of 10 mineral sunblocks that are suitable for dark complexions.

If you spend a lot of time in the water, many mineral-based sunscreens are reef-safe as well. The key is to always read the labels so you know what you’re getting when it comes to your sun protection!

Using Your Sunscreen Properly

How you use sunscreen increases the effectiveness of it as well. Most people don’t use enough, or re-apply as often as they should to be protected.

  • An adult sized person should be using 2 tablespoons (or more) of sunscreen to cover all exposed skin.
  • To be effective, it should be reapplied every two hours, or more if you are swimming or sweating excessively.
  • Remember to use sunscreen even on cloudy days; UV rays can pass through clouds.
  • Check the expiry date! Some of the compounds in sunscreen lose their efficacy over time – be sure to check that it is still within the posted expiry date on the label.
  • Protect your sunscreen from the sun and heat. Extreme temperatures can also break down the compounds in the sunscreen so be sure to tuck the bottle away somewhere out of direct sun and extreme heat.

No sunscreen, regardless of the SPF, will protect you completely and it should be only a part of your overall sun protection when enjoying the outdoors. Clothing, lip balm, hats, eye protection and avoiding the peak sun hours of 10:00am to 4:00pm should all be part of your plans to keep your skin protected as much as possible.

Get out this summer and soak up the sunshine – just be smart and safe when it comes to sun protection while you’re doing it.

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Allergies To Sunscreens and Oxybenzone

We all know that too much sun is bad for us…. but what happens if you have an allergic reaction to sunscreen? Many adults and children have allergic reactions to the chemical ingredients found in sunscreen.

Allergies to Sunscreen | health care victoriaHere is a list of what you don’t want in a sunscreen:  (courtesy of Environmental Working Group)

  • oxybenzone – One of the biggest culprits to making the sunscreens more of a toxin hazard.  The overall concerns with this ingredient is developmental/reproductive toxicity, Endocrine disruption, Allergies/immunotoxicity, Persistence and bioaccumulation, Enhanced skin absorption, Biochemical or cellular level changes.
  • Vitamin A – The sunscreen industry often adds vitamin A to its products because it is an anti-oxidant that slows skin aging. That may be true for lotions and night creams used indoors, but the FDA study of vitamin A’s photocarcinogenic properties raises the possibility that it results in cancerous tumors when used on skin exposed to sunlight. Scientists have known for some time that vitamin A can spur excess skin growth (hyperplasia), and that in sunlight it can form free radicals that damage DNA.  It may also speed the development of skin tumors and lesions. This finding is quite troubling because the sunscreen production companies adds vitamin A to about 30 percent of all sunscreens.
  • benzophenone-3, homosalate, or octyl-methoxycinnamate – These ingredients not only behave like estrogen and are known to disrupt users’ endocrine systems, they are more readily absorbed through the skin.
  • Sprays or powders. They have a greater potential to be inhaled.  Choose cream based products instead. Make sure to reapply them often, because sunscreen chemicals break apart in the sun, wash off in pools and rub off on towels and clothing.

So now you know what you don’t want, what’s left?  Below are a few websites that will show you what types of natural and organic sunscreens are available.

Natural Living Ideas

Ewg.org

Organic Authority

There are many natural sunscreens on the market, but just like everything else make sure you do your homework.

Choosing the Right SPF for Your Skin Type

· Fair skin — can stay in the sun 10 minutes before burning
· Olive skin — can stay in the sun 15 minutes before burning
· Dark skin — can stay in the sun 20 minutes before burning

Multiply the SPF by the number of minutes you can stay in the sun before burning. For example: (SPF) 20 x 10 (Fair skin) = 200 minutes (amount of time you can stay in the sun before burning if you have Fair skin and use an SPF of 20).

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What is SPF?

sunscreenThere are many choices for sunblock: creams, mousses, sprays and powders, ranging from SPF of 15 to SPF of 55 or higher.

Sunscreens are made with dozens of active ingredients that either use “absorbers” to create a chemical reaction to absorb UV rays or physical barriers that reflect and block UV rays. Many sunscreens incorporate both methods.

What is SPF?

Sunscreens are rated by the strength of their sun protection factor (SPF). The SPF number refers to the product’s ability to prevent UVB rays from damaging the skin.

A product with SPF 15, filters out approximately 93 percent of all incoming UVB rays.

A product with SPF 30, filters out approximately 97 percent of all incoming UVB rays.

A product with SPF 50, filters out approximately 98 percent of all incoming UVB rays.

  • It should be noted that no sunscreen, regardless of strength, will stay effective longer than two hours without reapplication.

To ensure that you get the full SPF of a sunscreen, the average adult needs about 2 or 3 tablespoons of sunscreen to cover their body and 1 teaspoon to cover their face and neck. That’s about half of a 237ml  bottle of sunscreen for a full day at the beach.

Sunscreens should be applied 30 minutes before sun exposure to allow the ingredients to  bind to the skin. Reapplication of sunscreen is just as important, so reapply the same amount every two hours.

Sun tips:

  • Sunscreen should be used on any exposed skin including ears, lips, feet etc
  • Use a lip balm with SPF and reapply often
  • Apply sunscreen on cloudy days – UV rays can pass through clouds
  • Sunscreens have an expiry date; they contain chemicals that may not work as well after the expiry date
  • Sunscreens can be affected by extreme changes in temperature, so leaving your bottle of sunscreen out in the sun all day, can destroy some of the chemical compounds and make the sunscreen much less effective.
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Facts You Should Know About Sun Safety

SunSafety8If you spend any time out in the sun, you should familiarize yourself with these sun safety facts.

 – More and more folks are adding umbrellas to their must haves for a day at the park or beach.  Umbrellas can be deceiving by making you think that you’re safer than you really are. Up to 80 percent of UV rays can bounce off reflective surfaces such as sand, concrete and water, and reach you under the umbrella. Regardless of where you are outside… use sunscreen!

 – Many medication, including some antibiotics, birth control pills, and antihistamines can make you sun sensitive. Always read the information sheet that comes with your prescription to see if the medication has a warning about sun sensitivity.

– Use the “shadow rule” as an easy way to help you gauge the strength of the sun.  If your shadow is shorter than you, that means that the sun is at its strongest, as well as the UV index. On average the strongest time for the sun is between 11:00am – 2:00pm.

– Don’t forget to use sunscreen on small body parts. We often concentrate on arms, legs and backs, but forget places like ears, fingers, toes, back of the neck, and back of the knees. Heads need protection too, so wear a wide brimmed hat to help protect your scalp.

– Sunglasses protect your eyes and the delicate skin around your eyes from serious sun-damage, including eye diseases, cataracts and skin cancer. Make sure the sunglasses you pick are close-fitting and that they offer 99-100% UV protection.

– Even when it’s cloudy outside, you need to wear sunscreen. UVA and UVB rays are not filtered by the clouds or by shade – allowing about 80% of the damaging rays to reach the earth. When outside, always where sunscreen.

– Waterproof sunscreens and water-resistant sunscreens are different. On average water-resistant sunscreen gives you about 40 minutes of sun protection in the water, while waterproof sunscreen provides about 80 minutes. Regardless of which type of sunscreen you use, always re-apply after swimming.

– Don’t wait to apply your sunscreen till you have reached your destination. It takes about 15 to 30 minutes for sunscreen to sink into your skin and start working, so always apply sunscreen before you leave your home.

– The average life expectancy of a bottle of sunscreen – according to the expiration date is 2 years.  However, sunscreens are often exposed to extreme heat, cold, and tops can be left open which can allow bacteria to enter the bottle which can destabilize the formula. To be safe, purchase new sunscreen every year.

– You can use clothing for sunscreen, but do your homework. A white cotton t-shirt provides an SPF of approximately 5 to 7, while a dark denim shirt with long sleeves can provide 100% protection. A good test is to hold your piece of clothing up to a light or window; if a large amount of light comes through the clothing, it won’t provide adequate protection. Consider hi-tech sun-protective clothing and accessories; many of them have a UPF rating (Ultraviolet Protection Factor) of 50 or higher.

So the next time you head outdoors, make sure you follow these sun safety rules.

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What’s in Your Sunscreen?

sunscreenMost of us use sunscreen, but other than looking at price and the SPF levels, we know relatively little about what we are putting on our bodies. We use sunscreen to avoid a sunburn and to limit our exposure to the sun’s harmful rays.

Here’s what you should know about UVA and UVB Rays:

UVA rays:
• Can pass through glass, such as a car window
• Are always present despite changes in altitude or weather, season and time of day
• Can penetrate deep into skin layers
• Totals 5% of the sun’s rays

UVB rays:
• Can’t pass through glass
• Can cause the skin to burn/tan
• Intensity of rays change with the weather conditions, altitude, season and time of day
• Totals 0.5% of the sun’s rays

Theoretically when applying sunscreen, the higher the sun protection factor – SPF – the more time you can spend out in the sun before suffering a sunburn.  This is not true: at least for high-SPF sunscreens of SPF 50 and over. Many studies have found that people are misled by the claims on high SPF sunscreen bottles.

Most of us assume that we’ll get twice as much protection from SPF 100 sunscreen as from SPF 50. In reality, the extra protection is negligible and gives a false sense of security, which leads to  longer stays stay in the sun, and overexposing ourselves to UVA and UVB rays.

Numerous studies show that sunscreen users apply the wrong amount of sunscreen.  The average person uses about one-half the quantity of sunscreen that the manufacturers recommends. Applying too little sunscreen or reapplying it too infrequently diminishes protection against free radical formation which can lead to skin cancer.

How much sunscreen should you be using? You should use approximately two milligrams of sunscreen per square centimeter of skin. This means applying two tablespoons of sunscreen to the exposed areas of the face and body, and remembering that sunscreen needs to be reapplied every two hours.

High SPF products require higher concentrations of active chemicals than lower SPF sunscreens, and some of these ingredients may pose health risks when they penetrate the skin. Sunscreen formulas come in two forms, mineral and chemical.

Mineral sunscreens use zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide.

Chemical sunscreen products typically include a combination of two to six active ingredients such as: oxybenzone, avobenzone, octisalate, octocrylene, homosalate and octinoxate.

The table below outlines human exposure and toxicity information for nine approved sunscreen chemicals.

ChemicalEWG Hazard ScoreUse in U.S. sunscreensSkin PenetrationHormone disruptionSkin AllergyOther concernsReferences
UV filters with higher toxicity concerns
Oxybenzone8WidespreadDetected in nearly every American; found in mother’s milk; 1-to-9% skin penetration in lab studiesActs like estrogen in the body; alters sperm production in animals; associated with endometriosis in womenRelatively high rates of skin allergyJanjua 2004, Janjua 2008, Sarveiya 2004, Gonzalez 2006, Rodriguez 2006, Krause 2012
Octinoxate (Octylmethoxycinnamate)6WidespreadFound in mothers’ milk; less than 1% skin penetration in human and laboratory studiesHormone-like activity; reproductive system, thyroid and behavioral alterations in animal studiesModerate rates of skin allergyKrause 2012, Sarveiya 2004, Rodriguez, 2006, Klinubol 2008
UV filters with moderate toxicity concerns
Homosalate4WidespreadFound in mothers’ milk; skin penetration less than 1% in human and laboratory studiesDisrupts estrogen, androgen and progesteroneToxic breakdown productsKrause 2012, Sarveiya 2004, SCCNFP 2006
Octisalate3Widespread; stabilizes avobenzoneSkin penetration in lab studiesRarely reported skin allergyWalters 1997, Shaw 2006 Singh 2007
Octocrylene3WidespreadFound in mothers’ milk; skin penetration in lab studiesRelatively high rates of skin allergyKrause 2012, Bryden 2006, Hayden 2005
UV filters with lower toxicity concerns
Titanium Dioxide2 (topical use), 6 (powder or spray)WidespreadNo finding of skin penetrationNo evidence of hormone disruptionNoneInhalation concernsGamer 2006, Nohynek 2007, Wu 2009, Sadrieh 2010, Takeda 2009, Shimizu 2009, Park 2009, IARC 2006b
Zinc Oxide2 (topical use), 4 (powder or spray)Widespread; excellent UVA protectionLess than 0.01% skin penetration in human volunteersNo evidence of hormone disruptionNoneInhalation concernsGulson 2012, Sayes 2007, Nohynek 2007, SCCS 2012
Avobenzone2Widespread; best UVA protection of chemical filtersVery limited skin penetrationNo evidence of hormone disruptionRelatively high rates of skin allergyKlinubol 2008, Bryden 2006, Hayden 2005, Montenegro 2008
Mexoryl SX2Uncommon; pending FDA approval; offers good, stable UVA protectionLess than 0.16% penetrated the skin of human volunteersNo evidence of hormone disruptionSkin allergy is rareBenech-Kieffer 2003, Fourtanier2008

Chemical sunscreens permeate the skin to some degree, and recently have been linked to tissue damage and potential hormone disruption.

“Laboratory studies of several sunscreen chemicals indicate that they may mimic hormones and disrupt the hormone system (Krause 2012, Schlumpf 2001, 2004, 2008).

Two European studies have detected sunscreen chemicals in mothers’ milk, indicating that the developing fetus and newborns may be exposed to these substances (Schlumpf 2008, Schlumpf 2010).”

Mineral Sunscreens are made with zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, and generally rate better than chemical sunscreens for toxicity.

Many sunscreens contain anti-inflammatory chemicals that can prevent skin from looking  sunburned. This is a problem because if you can’t see your body turning red, you assume you are adequately protected from the sun’s rays…but that’s not true.

Consumers are being lulled into thinking that their sunscreen is providing more protection than it actually does, and the result is that they stay out longer in the sun and increase their risk of skin cancer and skin damage.  So when it comes to sunscreens, do your homework!

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Tips On Exercising Outdoors During Winter

Tips On Exercising Outdoors During WinterWinter is here, and cold weather can discourage even the most dedicated exercisers.  So for those of you who might need some tips on exercising in cold weather… here you go!

#1 Warm Up

Take 10 minutes and do some low level aerobic exercises and stretches indoors to help your body start to warm up.

#2 Dress in Layers

Many folks make the mistake of dressing too warmly for exercising in cold weather.  When you exercise, you generates a significant amount of heat, and once your sweat starts to dry, you can get chilled.  So to avoid this situation, dress in layers.

Make sure the first layer is made out of a synthetic material, which will draw your sweat away from your body.  Next, add a layer of fleece or wool for insulation, and top this off with a waterproof outer layer that will keep you dry if it rains or snows.

#3 Protect Your Hands & Head

In cold weather, blood flow is concentrated on your body’s core and a substantial amount of body heat is lost from uncovered heads and hands; so wearing a hat, such as lightweight fleece cap, and gloves will help your body retain heat.

Wear your gloves, and hats before you go out side and become cold… you can remove them as you begin to work out and begin to sweat.

#4 Choose Appropriate Gear

This time of year it is dark in the mornings and starts getting dark in the late afternoon, so when exercises outside, always wear reflective clothing.  Find out what the weather conditions will be like during the time you’re planning to be outdoors and factor in how long you plan to be outside, and what activity you will be doing so you can dress accordingly.

#6 Use Sunscreen

You can get sunburned all year round — even more so if you’re exercising in the snow or at high altitudes. Wear a sunscreen that blocks both UVA and UVB rays and don’t forget to wear sunglasses to protect your eyes.

#7 Stay Hydrated

You need to stay hydrated when exercising in cold weather just as you do when exercising in warm weather. Drink plenty of fluids before you head outside, and be sure to bring some along with you.

If you suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), getting outside and exercising during the day will help alleviate your symptoms.

Contact our Physiotherapists if you would like some suggestions on great warm-up stretches that are activity specific.

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