Skin Care - Protecting Your Skin From the Sun

Protecting your skin from the sun is one of the very most important aspects of any anti-aging skin care routine. It is the one essential that if ignored can completely mitigate all of your other healthy choices. Unfortunately, keeping your skin safe from the sun is a little more difficult than many realize.

There are two types of ultraviolet rays that effect your skin - UVA and UVB. In the past we thought UVB was really the only UV ray that caused any danger as it is what causes the burning of the skin. People thought that the more prevalent (up to 40x more prevalent) UVA ray was of little concern. Due to this, many sunscreens were designed only to be effective against UVB rays.

Now we realize that it is actually the UVA ray that is more damaging. While UVB can give the skin a superficial burn on the top layers, UVA actually penetrate much deeper and are responsible for the majority of skin aging. They have also been shown to be directly related to the development of skin cancer. The use of tanning beds, which use primarily UVA rays, have been shown to dramatically increase a persons risk of developing skin cancer.

UVA unlike UVB are also able to easily penetrate windows, and are equally powerful at all hours of sunlight throughout the day.

So, how do we mitigate the effects of ultraviolet rays?

The best option is to try to avoid the sun as much as possible. If you will be outside, a large brimmed hat and long sleeves are a must. Sunscreen is also great, but one must ensure that they are using a natural sunscreen with physical blocking agents such titanium dioxide or zinc dioxide. The majority of sunscreens (pretty much everything you find in most stores besides the natural grocers) instead use a harmful chemical blocking agent called oxybenzone. Oxybenzone is a hormone blocker that has direct links to cancer. Another nasty thing featured in many unnatural sunscreens is the paraben. Parabens, like oxybenzone, have hormone mimicking capabilities, and have been linked to breast cancer and other diseases.

Using a topical skin care product such as a serum with vitamin C is a great idea. Vitamin C, when applied to the skin, can have a profound effect at mitigating UV generated skin damage. Look for a serum or cream that also features vitamin E, as this will further increase the protective properties of the product.

If you will be spending a fair amount of time outside, stay away from skin care products with vitamin A. While vitamin A can help heal sun damage, it does leave the skin more sensitive, so it is often an ingredient better utilized in the winter when you will not be outside as much.

The number one thing you can do for your skin is to avoid too much sun. This one action alone can do remarkable things for the appearance and health of your skin.
About this Author

Learn more about skin care from Sam's many articles here on EzineArticles. The sooner you start taking care of your skin the better. Remember though when choosing skin care products to always go all natural. With the lack of regulation in the industry, many unnatural skin care products utilize harmful synthetic ingredients that can cause permanent damage to your body. Become an educated consumer when it comes to the products you use on your skin.

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