Why You Need to Wear SPF

They say the quickest way to a dermatologist’ heart is by telling them you reapply your sunscreen every two hours throughout the day.

I’m here to confirm that’s true.

But, surely, there must be a reason why sunscreen is important? There must be a reason apart from preventing sun damage and protecting your skin.

There are a multitude of reasons as to why it is important to wear sunscreen. We’ll start with the benefits of sunscreen and move on to my most recommended products.

Fact Break: “Did you know 5 or more sunburns double your risk of melanoma?” -National Skin Cancer Foundation

Wearing sunscreen daily is one of the easiest and most effective ways to prevent damage to your skin. Wearing sunscreen is important for everyone, no matter your skin color. Even if you're simply walking around, spending time outside, or driving in a car with the windows down, it's important to wear sunscreen. This has been proven over and over again by scientists—there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't be doing it every day.

Sun damage is permanent. The sun doesn't care whether you're busy or if you're sleeping; it never takes weekends off. And, once the damage is done, it’s very difficult to amend.

The Skin Cancer Foundation reports that only 1 in 5 Americans wears sun protection year-round, so the choice to wear sunscreen is an important one. When used properly, sunscreen provides essential skin care protection against aging and the sun's harmful rays. The best preventive step you can take is to use sunscreen every day, every time you go outside. UV radiation contributes to the development of skin cancer. The sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays are quite dangerous and should be avoided whenever possible.

The sun can cause bigger problems than just a sunburn, even if you don’t experience a burn. When the sun prematurely ages the skin, this is called photoaging. It can have negative effects on your skin such as fine lines, wrinkles, brown spots, redness, uneven texture, and sagging of the skin. Damage to the skin can also alter your skin appearance and cause hyper pigmentation.

Therefore, it's vital to wear sunscreen daily and reapply as needed throughout the day. The best way to do this is with a physical sunscreen like zinc oxide or titanium dioxide which sit on top of your skin and block UVA and UVB waves. Be sure to look for at least SPF 30 in your sunscreen and reapply as needed (in some places like Hawaii, even SPF 100 is recommended).

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-Dr. Del Campo