Well, would you? Chances are you wouldn’t, but there are some die hard naturists out there who probably would. Me, never! Not for all the tea in China. I would not inflict this lumpy, bumpy, and saggy body on anyone! Not even my husband! And then there is the embarrassment as everyone stops and stares!
So, my point is why would you not wear SPF/UV protection on your skin? More importantly your face?
The reason for me putting this question to you is that two of my customers this week have prompted me to shout about this. The first lady was looking for a foundation which wasn’t heavy, but would cover redness and possibly scarring as she was going for an operation on her face. A few questions later and it turns out the operation is to remove a skin cancer caused by sun damage. The cancer was on the side of her nose but the surgeon was going to have to also remove some skin from her cheek. I tried to keep the conversation upbeat and said that the surgeons could do amazing work and leave little damage to the area. I hoped!
The second customer came in looking for a free sample of foundation as she had an invite for one on her app. Again, after a short discussion about type and coverage, and what she wanted for her skin, it turned out she now had hyper-pigmentation. This was due to prolonged sun exposure during the very hot week of weather that we have just had in the UK, where temperatures topped 40 degrees Celsius. This lady had not bothered with any SPF/UV protection. She had dark patches of pigmentation along with the remnants of red, sore blistered cheeks.
Skin cancer figures continue to rise. Cancer Research UK have stated that 1 in 36 UK males, and 1 in 47 UK females will get a melanoma diagnosis in their lifetime. This type of cancer is now one of the biggest killing cancers in the 15-34 age group (source: skcin.org).
So this leads me to ask why you would leave your face naked? I could scream from the top of Mount Ben Nevis that SPF/UV protection will help limit the possibility of skin cancers.
When you burn your skin, you are killing it! Sun protection products do what they say on the tin! They are protecting your skin from death! When you also wear an SPF/UV product you are giving your skin chance to heal from any damage as the SPF/UV is protecting it.
But your moisturiser or foundation already have an SPF in them, I hear you say. This is not enough. The recommended amount of SPF/UV product to give the stated level of protection is about 2.5ml, or half a teaspoon according to Dr Sam Bunting.
The number SPF50 (SPF30, SPF15, etc) means it will protect your skin 50 times longer than without. So, if your skin burns after 10 minutes of sun exposure, then your product with an SPF50 will protect you for 500 minutes – over 8 hours before you would need to re-apply. However, these figures are just a guide to show you an example. We are all different. Some skin types may start to burn after just 5 minutes exposure, whilst others may take 20 minutes or longer. So work out your own figures to determine your SPF. If in doubt, go high and re-apply.
You can use your SPF/UV product under your foundation or just on bare skin. You will also find some very good skin primers that come with an high SPF.
I have listed below some of my tried and tested UV products. And remember that this product is for 365 days a year!
La Mer The SPF50 UV protecting fluid 50ml £95
Estee Lauder Profectionist Pro Multi Defence Aqua UV Gel SPF50 30ml £40
Ultra Viollette Queen Screen SPF50 50ml £36
La Roche-Posay Anthelios SPF50 50ml £18
Estee Lauder Double Wear Flawless Hydrating Primer SPF 45 30ml £31
Protect yourself daily, it takes seconds. Your skin will thank you for it. Trust me.
Tracy x
