All of this (maybe) you do not know yet about sunscreen

Creams, oils, sprays, gels, sticks. Who prefers one, who the other, but all beyond certain basic indications – the spray may be better for the little ones, to facilitate the application, while the sticks are more comfortable on the lips and around the eyes – they do the same work : protect from the sun . The sunscreens (now we will call them all, to indicate the category) are also the most undisputed protagonists of the recommendations of doctors especially with the arrival of the summer because they are among the means that we can set up in the us defend against sun damage. But do we really know them despite the recurring recommendations each year? We tried to develop a manual to look closely at these shields of sunlight, recently at the center of the chronicles, not even strictly medical, after the news of the ban on products containing certain ingredients that threatened ] the health of corals .

What they do
But we said, scudi . In fact, sunscreens function as screens, but in different ways depending on the defense systems (filters) explained. Even the British Association of Dermatologists (Bad) uses the widespread metaphor of sponges and mirrors to explain how the two types of filters that may be present in sunscreen work: they are divided among those organic ] (traditionally known as chemicals, in a way that is not really appropriate) they absorb sunlight and release it in small amounts of heat (infrared laws) and those inorganic (or physical) reflect it instead. but from a division of the genre or from one or the other: some creams may indeed contain filters of both types. The common ingredients in both categories are: oxybenzone, octyl salicylate, octocrylene or zinc oxide and titanium dioxide for physical filters. The different types of filters offer different protection for the type and amount of ultraviolet A and B radiation (part C of the ultraviolet rays of solar radiation does not reach the surface of the Earth because it is blocked by the ;ozone).
Foreword. The creams protect against the sun's ultraviolet rays, but not just a pbad to stay on the bed for hours. "Sunscreens should be seen as a help to a proper tan and not a pbad for too long exposures" reminds the Ministry of Health. Given the necessary premise of the quantity of products, it is natural to ask what is the most appropriate for our skin and our habits. Experts in the field agree that in choosing should be preferred creams that offer broad-spectrum protection, or that provide protection against Ua rays (those that penetrate deeper into the skin, are primarily responsible for aging skin and pbad through the glbad) that Uvb (do not pbad through the glbad, are partially blocked by ozone, penetrate less and are the main cause of burns and badociated with tumors, even if both participate in the neoplastic transformation). The same pages also indicate that the words "water resistant" are not equivalent to the concept of "waterproof" : better for this new demand for creams, especially after to take a bath, if you sweat a lot and after drying and taking away some of the old cream Sun protection factor or protection factor against sunburn?
Among the information on the label is perhaps the best known, the SPF, which means Sun Protection Factor (sun protection factor). Larger numbers indicate greater protection and the general rule is that in choosing a cream, the SPF must be inversely proportional to the phototype. That is to say: we prefer a cream with a high SPF (50) as close to weak phototypes, as 1-2 (light or very light complexion, fair to light brown hair, sensitive to burns with ease) . But what is the real meaning of the SFP? As emphasized by the Bad, it would be more appropriate to designate the concept by Protection factor against sunburn because we are talking about a system to measure the protection against UV rays (those, tells us, responsible for burns). They actually write about the Food and Drug Administration (FDA): "The SPF value indicates the level of protection against sunburn provided by a solar product" . These products, continue from the agency, measure the amount of UV exposure so as to cause a burn on a protected skin compared to unprotected protection. And here we come to the numbers: a cream with Spf 15 means that it will allow you to stay in the sun before being burned 15 times longer than without cream.

Spf: 30 is not twice the size of 15
in relation to the amount of radiation protected: a cream with Spf 15 pbades about 1/15 of the UV rays (i.e. about 93%), one with 30:30 Spf (that is, about 97%) and high protection, with 50% Spf, 1/50 (ie, 98% filter).
This means that on a number, when the SPF increases, the filtered portion of the filtered radiation develops very slowly, as shown in the graph of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a special on sunscreen. And there are no creams that can block 100% of UVB rays, remember the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD).

With regard to protection against UV radiation, the European Union recommends that protection be at least offered by the SPF (referring to Uvb). When the criterion is satisfied, the circle appears with Uva writing inward. All this is valid on paper. As Beatrice Mautino also remembers, in her book "The trick is here and you see " in the chapter on sunscreens, in practice the amount of ultraviolet rays varies during the day, the exposure is different from one place to another and with different weather conditions, and the creams themselves during the day are washed away, exhausted. There is in essence a question of time, as Mautino calls, which weighs on the actual effectiveness of creams and goes beyond the characteristics of the products themselves

How
the day the creams are Forgiveness . For various reasons: baths, absorption, perspiration. This is the reason why experts recommend a new application, on average every two hours. But it is also necessary to make a really adequate application, which leaves no room behind, especially those that are generally forgotten, such as the back of the neck, feet, temples or ears. On quantities and modalities, the help of dermatologists is again useful: for an adult, the minimum amount of cream should correspond to about 6 teaspoons to spread on the body (equivalent to about 36 grams), a couple if you intend to cover only the neck and arms of the head come from the British Nhs (website of the National Health Service). All this preferably 15 to 30 minutes before sun exposure.

Eye to the Little
Recommendations are to avoid exposing children under the age of 6 months to the sun, thus avoiding jointly using sunscreen on them. As a general protection for the little ones (the sun caught small weighs on the big risks) better invest in the shade and on the clothes, counting on the help of high protection creams (with a Spf of 30 up) for areas not covered. For the whole family, the main tip is in the words of a recent article published on Mayo Clinic: "Use sunscreens all year round, and do not let any product lull you into a misconception The best solution is to combine shade, appropriate clothing, sunscreen and common sense ". Even if they protect, according to an old European Commission document, sunscreen products "should therefore not affirm or give the impression of guaranteeing total protection against the risks arising from the use of sunscreens. excessive exposure to UV rays. ".