Sunscreen, protected skin: here are the mistakes to avoid – Well-being

Do you use sunscreen to protect yourself from the sun? You should be careful how you coat the product on the surface of the skin, because the protective factor can be reduced by half of what could be . This is what emerges from a study conducted at King's College London and which has just been published in the journal Acta Dermato-Venezuela.

LO STUDIO
It is generally believed that sunscreens protect less than what they promise because we apply them without following the producers' recommendations. British researchers have for the first time tried to understand scientifically how this dynamic actually works. They invited light-skinned volunteers to apply a high-protection cream at different doses, from 0.75 mg to 2 mg per square centimeter, the amount recommended by the producers to obtain the SPF score (protection factor indicated on the tubes). )

Thus, volunteers were subjected to two types of sun exposure: a single session and a series of continuous sessions for five days, to simulate the typical holidays in sunny places like Tenerife, Florida and Brasil. Later, in the laboratories, biopsies were performed to measure the resulting damage to the skin by the badysis of DNA.

WE USE THE SMALL SOLAR CREAM
The results showed that when we apply creams with a high SPF like that of 50, we get a protection that reaches a maximum of 40% of that expected. The reason is that we probably believe that we use a sufficient amount of cream, whereas in fact we apply little. The biopsies confirm this, revealing that the skin of people exposed to UV rays for a long time reports significant damage to DNA in areas that have not received sunscreen, while the values ​​of the skin Are gradually improving when the sunscreen is applied with more attention. of 2 milligrams per square centimeter

And those who correctly applied the products did not have problems even with prolonged exposures: the results show that people exposed for a short period to unprotected UV rays have more damage than those exposed. been five days under the sun, but protected with cream at 2 milligrams per square centimeter.

BEST PROTECTION
The author of the research, Professor Antony Young, explains: "There is no doubt that sunscreen provides significant prevention against skin cancer, but this research shows that the way the creams are applied plays an important role in determining its effectiveness. "

The conclusion is that, if the indications of the manufacturers are correct, we are the ones who tend to spread little cream on the skin . For researchers, therefore, beyond the spread of more cream, it is always better to use creams with a much higher protection factor than is deemed necessary.