4 months ago
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Temps are rising, Memorial Day weekend is upon us, summer is here, baby! But before we all throw on our itsy bitsy teeny weeny yellow polka dot bikinis, the good folks at Yahoo News and YouGov are alerting us that although 83% of adults in the US believe that protecting your skin from the sun is important, in practice more than 30% don’t use sunscreen at all. Not entirely surprising, given the proliferation of people spreading misinformation about it. Yahoo/YouGov polled 1,794 people on their sunscreen knowledge and usage, and now they’ve consulted Dr. Vicky Shen Ren (assistant professor of dermatology at Baylor College of Medicine) and Dr. Julia Tzu (founder/director of Wall Street Dermatology) to help interpret the results.
Survey says: The poll revealed that 33% of adults say they never use sunscreen — with more men reporting skipping sunscreen than women (42% compared to 25%), while 29% of respondents say they use it less than a few times a month. Only 12% of adults use sunscreen every day, with more women making sun protection part of their daily routine than men (18% compared to 6%).
Skin cancer is easier to prevent than other cancers: Skin cancer affects 1 in 5 Americans, but, as Ren points out, “it is one of the most preventable cancers.” She explains that sunscreen and protective clothing, such as broad-brimmed hats, long-sleeved shirts and long pants “play a huge role in preventing skin cancer,” adding: “UV exposure — whether intermittent or chronic, low or high intensity, via tanning beds or sunlight — increases the risk of skin cancer and pre-cancers, as well as premature aging,” including lentigines (aka age spots), melasma and wrinkles.
Make it a daily habit: Experts say it’s important to make sunscreen application part of your daily routine so it becomes a habit, just like brushing your teeth. Tzu and Ren suggest keeping sunscreen in easily accessible or visible places, such as on your bathroom counter, by the door or on your desk “so you are visually reminded to use it daily,” says Ren, who suggests also keeping sunscreen in your purse or backpack in case you forget to use it or need to reapply.
SPF-infused makeup is an acceptable option: Although traditional sunscreen provides better protection than SPF-infused makeup, some level of protection is better than none. Ren says you can use a CC (color correcting) cream with SPF or tinted sunscreen “so that you are combining sunscreen with your beauty routine.” … Whether you go with regular sunscreen or the tinted kind, the American Academy of Dermatology recommends using SPF 30 or higher, which is good news for the majority of adults in the survey: 25% say they use SPF 50, and 23% use SPF 30, compared to 6% who use SPF 15 and 3% who opt for SPF 100.
You must reapply: The poll also found that nearly 30% of adults rarely or never reapply sunscreen every two hours when they’re outdoors, swimming or sweating. But experts say that leaves you vulnerable to sunburns. “After application, sunscreen gradually loses efficacy, partly due to the effects of the sun,” explains Ren. “Sunscreen should be reapplied at least every two hours, more frequently if the person is sweating or engaging in water activities. Some sunscreens will designate water resistant 40 or 80 on the label, which indicates the sunscreen will be effective in the water for 40 or 80 minutes, respectively. After that timeframe, the sunscreen needs to be reapplied.”
Sunburn and tanning damage DNA in skin cells: The poll found that 80% of adults have gotten a sunburn at least once and 64% have gotten multiple sunburns. Not surprisingly, that’s not good for your skin. “Sunburns, as well as tanning — indoor or outdoor — without burning, damage the DNA in skin cells,” explains Ren. “This damage accumulates with more episodes of tanning and/or sunburns and leads to a significantly increased risk of skin cancer, including melanoma, which accounts for the most skin cancer deaths.”
Eeks, I know I’ve been dropping the ball on daily sunscreen wear, but I didn’t realize that also included reapplication every two hours! When I’m on vacation I am super vigilant; I lather the stuff on top to bottom, and for swimming I wear three-piece suits — bathing pants (yes, really), a tankini top, and a long sleeve rash guard. Plus a visor or cartoonishly wide-brimmed hat. Why the getup? I have excessively pale-colored skin. The first time I went to buy concealer as a teen, the Sephora employee took one look and sarcasmed at me: “I think we’ll need the Kabuki section.” (I also have red curly hair, so just picture me as a young Nicole Kidman’s lethargic baby sister.)
I’m not gonna lie, integrating my strict vacation regimen into everyday life is not appealing. But I have family history to contend with; my grandmother adored “sunbathing” throughout her life, and got melanoma on her leg that was roughly the size of a small country. She recovered, thankfully. But like the doctors here say, skin cancer is the most preventative of cancers. I’d rather not just hand the Big C an easy win.
Photos credit: Derek Owens on Unsplash, Kindel media and Retha Ferguson on Pexels
