6 Best Sunscreen Practises for Healthy Skin

UV can funk with your skin in a whole host of ways.

But there is also a minefield of pseudoscientific myths.

Especially surrounding the best sunscreen practices.

This is perpetuated by people who are unsure of what they’re talking about.

Fortunately, our professional advice carries more weight than that of a regular beauty vlogger.

Join us as we help you understand the best sunscreen protection practices.

Best Sunscreen Practices

• Is zinc the best sunscreen?
• Should I use SPF 30 or SPF 50?
• What are the best sunscreen ingredients?
• What is the best sunscreen for sensitive skin?
• What is the best sunscreen for acne-prone skin?
• Should I use physical or chemical sunscreen?

These are just a few of the questions our customers ask in our clinic.

So we thought with a bit of help from our skincare experts here at NC, we figured we would unpack this for you:

Tip One: Start early to prevent ageing

The earlier you start using sunscreen, the better. Any pigmentation changes you see in your skin come from cumulative damage over a lifetime, which begins at an early age. The damage may not show in your skin until your 30s.

Extensive sun exposure can generate free radicals, which can alter your DNA, creating a biochemical environment that may be conducive to the development of cancer cells.

These free radicals cause oxidation and destroy your collagen and elastin, which help keep your skin looking plump and give it that youthful snap back. Wrinkles, sagging skin, and poor skin texture will quickly appear when this happens.

Tip Two: Regularly apply your sunscreen

Chemical sunscreens use one of several compounds as their protective agent—for example, Oxybenzone.

The rhetoric surrounding “unsafe” chemical sun protection made it unfit for use.

Fortunately, today, new advances in chemistry and FDA guidelines mean fewer problems with chemical-based sunscreens.

Physical sunscreens use agents such as Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide. We believe both chemical and biological sunscreens work equally well.

Tip Three: SPF is not enough to protect your skin fully

The number on your sunscreen represents the sun protection factor (SPF), which measures how long you can stay in the sun without getting burned.

If you don’t apply sunscreen, your skin will burn in about 30 minutes; thus, an SPF of 6 would allow you to stay out six times longer, or three hours, without getting burned.

However, the term SPF is outdated because it measures how long it takes for clinical inflammation to appear. This inflammation is a form of cellular damage and can occur long before the skin turns red.

Apply sunscreen regularly and follow safe sun practices to prevent sun-damaged skin.

Tip Four: Antioxidants can protect the skin

Looking at non-SPF ingredients that work synergistically is more productive than scrutinising your SPF number; this is especially true for antioxidants.

Some UV rays penetrate your skin and cause free radical damage, even with SPF. Using an antioxidant product can help prevent oxidation.

In other words, good protection should involve a sunscreen with an SPF factor and a combination of antioxidants to prevent and stop free radical damage, which is why we created the following products:

C+ skin shot, with its cocktail of lightening, brightening, and antioxidant ingredients, is an essential melanin inhibitor that will help reduce hyperpigmentation. It is combined with ferulic acid to neutralise oxidation.

Tip Five: Treating sun damage

The symptoms of skin damage from excessive sun exposure can include hyperpigmentation, sagging skin, uneven skin texture, broken capillaries, and inflammation.

To understand what causes this damage, we need to look at ultraviolet light in more detail:

UVA rays, also known as ageing rays, damage the skin’s dermal structures, including collagen and elastin.

These rays are longer and more penetrating and are responsible for DNA damage. UVA rays also cause melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer.

UVB rays are known as burning rays. They are shorter than UVA rays and cause sunburn. They are responsible for most non-melanoma skin cancers.

UV rays speed up melanin production, the pigment responsible for giving your skin its colour.

The overactivation of pigment cells causes irregular pigmentation, so age spots appear whenever melanin is produced in high concentrations, especially if your skin has been exposed to the sun for years.

Our article on melanin is a great starting point for understanding how your skin responds when it is damaged by UV rays.

Tip Six: Sunscreen for skin types

We are often asked about the best sunscreen for oily skin. Applying sunscreen can be unappealing if you have oily skin, especially since many formulas leave a greasy, white cast.

Fortunately, plenty of sunscreens leave your skin with a non-oily finish. If you have acne, look for products labelled as “oil-free” or “non-comedogenic.”

The best daily sunscreen for sensitive skin is one with a lower SPF. As a general rule, the higher the SPF, the more chemicals it contains. Therefore, if your skin is sensitive, it’s best to stick to an SPF of 20 or lower.

To conclude. The naked truth

Implementing the best sunscreen practices will protect your skin from sunburn and help lower your risk of skin cancer, but as you can see, there is a lot to know.

Too much sun exposure can do more harm than good to your skin, leading to hyperpigmentation, redness, and premature ageing due to damage to collagen and elastin.

It’s a good idea to know terms like SPF and understand just how destructive UV rays can be on your skin, and how a combination of a good SPF sunscreen,

Vitamin C and antioxidant-rich formulas, such as our C+ ascorbic acid skin shot, defend your skin against sun rays and help reverse some damage.

Armed with this knowledge, you will be better equipped to treat your skin correctly and protect it from the early signs of ageing.

Finally, if your moles change shape, please consult your doctor or dermatologist.

Pigmented changes can usually be corrected, but since everyone is different, it’s best to have them evaluated by a specialist.