Posted on: June 18, 2008
(Don’t) Feel the Burn
Dealing with sun is a daily endeavor. Find out when people forget protection but need it the most
By Melanie Wanzek
CTW Features
Have you put on your SPF today? The place you’re most likely to get sunburned isn’t the beach.
“Most people get the majority of their sun exposure casually,” says Dr. Zoe Draelos, dermatologist, High Point, N.C. “That’s driving in the car, taking out the trash, going to the mailbox and walking outdoors to go get lunch.”
According to the American Cancer Society, more than one million cases of basal cell or squamous cell cancers, the most common types of skin cancer, occur annually. While people now know to use sunscreen at the pool, beach or even on a cloudy day, Draelos says one of the biggest problems is that people don’t think to use sunscreen for protection every day.
“Most people think ‘oh, I’m going to the beach, I’d better grab my sunscreen,’ but I think a lot of people don’t make it a daily habit,” she says. “So probably one of most import things, especially for a woman, is to pick a sunscreen-containing moisturizer or facial foundation.”
But women aren’t the only ones who are forgetting to use sunscreen daily. During weekend activities, such as a picnic in the park, both men and women often remember to apply sunscreen to their faces but forget key areas like the tops of ears, backs of necks and exposed chests. According to Draelos, these are very common skin cancer areas for men in particular.
“People think, ‘oh, I’ll just put a little on my face,’ but skin cancer is very common on the ears, the neck, the upper back and upper chest,” she says. “Men, especially, now think, ‘I’m wearing a ball cap,’ but a ball cap doesn’t have a brim and doesn’t protect the ears, sides of neck or sides of face.”
But new advances in sunscreen technology make it easier to protect your skin than ever: products are smoother and less greasy, making them easier to wear under makeup, and they are also more photostable, giving you fully effective protection for a longer period of time rather than weakening quickly. Just remember, it is still important to apply your sunscreen thickly, evenly and frequently (every two hours) for maximum defense.
“Apply one coat, let it dry, and apply a second coat,” Draelos says. “To cover the sun-exposed areas of the body – the face, neck, back of the neck and arms – it takes about a shot glass.”
