So, you’ve finally cleared your schedule, and this is the weekend – all day at the beach. Great! Having decided that you need a sunscreen is a great idea, but then comes the question of how far should you go. What SPF should you pick? Is SPF 100 worth the extra pennies?
Let’s see …
What does the SPF tell us about a sunscreen
First of all, SPF stands for sun protection factor. This is the relative measure of the strength of protection a sunscreen provides. There are basically two ways to judge a sunscreen by virtue of its SPF:
Length of protection.
The number ideally refers to the amount of time it would take for the sun’s ultraviolet(UV) rays to damage your skin when you have the sunscreen on, compared to when you are without it. If, for instance, it would take 40 minutes for the sun to burn your skin without any protection, it would instead take (SPF x 40) minutes for the same sun burn to happen if you have the sunscreen on. Commonly used sunscreens come with SPFs 15, 30, 50 and 100.
The strength of protection
The SPF can give us an idea of the extent of protection from UV rays we are receiving from the sunscreen. Here is the ideal level of protection you should expect from your sunscreen: An SPF 15 sunscreen blocks 93 percent of UV-B rays, SPF 30 blocks 97 percent, SPF 50 blocks 98 and SPF 100 blocks 99 percent.
Although going for SPF 100 instead of SPF 50 only enhances your protection slightly, that 1% extra protection can add up over time and reduce the accumulation of chronic UV damage. This added protection will cannot be ignored, especially under certain high risk cases
Who may benefit most from an SPF 100 sunscreen
SPFs 30 and 50 do provide adequate protection for the average user under average conditions. There are times it’s better to go as high as you can. This is where the situation may be a bit outside of average, meaning a higher SPF will make more investment sense:
If you have an increased susceptibility to sunburn. This is something you may know from past experience. Also a family history of skin cancer can indicate that you are susceptible.
Engagement in a highly aerobic activity in the sun, such as jogging, cycling, playing beach volley, etc. This kind of activity causes the body to generate heat on its own at a rate higher than for someone who’s just sunbathing. This internally generated heat can increase your skin’s susceptibility to sunburn.
Lengthy exposure to the sun. The longer you plan to be out in the open, the more a higher SPF makes sense. Activities such as hiking or even occupational field work may keep you long under direct sun light. In such, SPF 100 is a plausible choice.
Direct skin exposure. How much your body is shielded from direct sun contact does matter. The physical protection provided by clothing, including caps plays a vital role in cutting off a large chunk of the UV rays. But sometimes, you really just want to get out there, in every sense of phrase, meaning, protective clothing may be a nuisance you want to leave behind. In such a case, you need all the UV protection you can get, making SPF 100 the best option for you.
Putting all things into consideration, you can never go wrong with your SPF 100 sunscreen. There are many factors that make sunscreen use less effective in the real world than under laboratory setups. When you factor in the fact that the way we apply sunscreens differs from one person to another, the difference in the amount we apply, how often we re-apply if needed, the different protective measures we supplement sunscreens with, such as clothing, you realize that a perfect scenario may be hard to define in the real world. Given all these possible sources of interference, it makes sense to get the most you can get from each drop of your sunscreen, to use a sunscreen that offers that highest SPF there is, and that’s what makes your SPF 100 sunscreen a good investment.
Happy Shopping :)