Understanding Sun Protection Basics

People are finally beginning to realize that although sunshine is an important component of most outdoor activities and a great mood enhancer, excessive exposure can lead to much unpleasantness. A painful sunburn is the most immediate consequence of excess exposure. Long term, excess exposure can damage the skin making it prone to wrinkling. And, finally, protection from the sun's damaging rays is important for anyone who wants to limit his or her risk of developing skin cancer.

Sun protection is important anytime you'll be outdoors between the hours of 10:00 am and 3:00 pm, when the sun is at its highest. People don't realize that they can still burn even though the sun isn't shining. Overcast days are some of the worst times for being in the sun unprotected. And because ultraviolet rays can reflect off certain surfaces, people need protection from the sun when snow covers the ground and also when in the water, when lying or playing on the sand and even when on a cement or grass surface.

Ultraviolet rays are the different wavelengths of energy that are produced by the sun. Even though harmful, the sun's energy is necessary to all human life. Fortunately, as life on earth has evolved so has the capacity to tolerate UV rays. The most important protection against the damaging ultraviolet rays is the ozone layer - a layer in the stratosphere that absorbs most of the various types of UV rays before they reach the earth's surface.

Most of this radiation or energy from the sun is invisible to the naked eye. The fact that the radiation is mostly invisible is likely the reason why the sun can be so harmful. It's hard to convince a person to protect against something that can't be seen. Of the ultraviolet rays, the two that are responsible for skin damage are UVA and UVB rays. The sun also generates UVC rays, but fortunately these extremely damaging rays cannot penetrate the ozone layer and therefore pose no threat to humans.

The longer and more prevalent of the two, UVA rays are responsible for long-term skin damage because they absorb deep into the skin. Their strength remains uniform regardless of the time of day or time of year. UVB rays are shorter and are what causes skin to tan or sunburns. Our bodies need UVB rays to produce Vitamin D, an important vitamin. Their strength varies based on time of day, time of year, altitude and also distance from the equator.

The UV Index is a scale measuring from 0 – 11 (low to extreme) and it's used to determine the intensity of the sun's radiation, particularly the likelihood that skin will or will not redden when exposed to the sun for various periods of time.

How To Improve any Type Skin Quality

Beautiful... healthy... glowing skin. Every individual, whether beauty-conscious or not wants it. But lasting skin beauty can only result from faithful, regular care. While we have marvelous skin care products to make life easier, it is the way you treat your skin everyday that really counts as the years go by. Today you will learn about your skin type.

One of the keys to proper skin care is knowing and making allowances for your skin type. Being aware of your skin type allows you to plan which types of cleansers, moisturizers, and other tools you need to use in order to get the best skin possible. There are several recognized skin types, but three main categories: oily, dry, and combination skin. Also you should add environmentally damaged skin.

Most skin types are genetically determined, but can be worsened by the environment, diet, harsh soaps, and overuse of the wrong skin care products - so be careful! Your skin care plan may also need to be modified for geography and season; if it's hotter than normal, for example, you may want to use skin products for oilier skin types, and if it's cooler, more moisturizer may be required.

It's easy to determine which skin type you have. When you get up in the morning, before you take a shower, wipe your face with a dry tissue, top to bottom. If it comes up greasy, you have oily skin. If it's dry, you have dry or combination skin; a little grease on the center of the tissue also suggests combination skin. You can also catch a clue from how your skin feels. If it seems parched and stretched too tight, it's dry; if it's slick, it's oily; but if it feels smooth and supple, it's almost certainly normal.

Combination skin is the most common skin type, and as such it's sometimes known as normal skin. It ends to be oily in the "T-zone" -- across the eyebrows and down the nose - and dry elsewhere. Your best bet for combination skin is to consistently deliver the moisturizers and nutrients it needs to stay healthy. You'll need to wash your face once or twice a day with a mild cleanser, though you might occasionally want to wash with a mild exfoliating cleaner to keep your pores unclogged. Be sure to rinse the cleanser off thoroughly with fresh, clean water. Follow that up with a skin toner to tighten and tone your pores, and finally, add the moisturizer that all skin types require.

Oily skin lives up to its name: it's shinier than normal skin, with larger pores, and may seem thicker to the casual eye. It can be a major battle to keep oily skin balanced and healthy-looking, but it responds well to regular exfoliation, deep-cleansing beauty masks, lightweight moisturizers, and the appropriate balancing ingredients to increase the skin's natural elasticity. Be careful not to overdo it, however: too many harsh cleaners can dehydrate your skin - or worse, cause your pores to release more sebum, making your skin even oilier. In fact, in order not to damage your skin, you should hydrate it with natural products that are non-oily. Be sure to wash your face with a mildly exfoliating skin cleanser at least twice a day, and use an astringent or toner to tighten your pores and make them look smaller. Believer it or not, witch hazel extract works well, and it's cheap.

Dry skin is basically skin that's parched and thirsty. It's tight, sensitive, and sometimes even flaky. It's all caused by pores that don't produce enough sebum, and can be worsened by hormones, aging, harsh detergents, and environmental factors. In order to return dry skin to a normal, healthy glow, you'll need to make sure that it's properly cleansed and hydrated. Use an exfoliating cleaner with alpha hydroxy acids on a daily basis. You can also use products with ceramides and lipids to help dry skin remain supple and well-hydrated.

Environmentally Damaged Skin is skin that has lost some of its natural suppleness and elasticity due to environmental damage - usually wind, sun, smoking, and pollution, but stress can also contribute. Uneven skin tone, roughening, dryness, and premature aging are all part of the package. While treatment can vary according to the type of damage, it's a good idea to start with professional skin exfoliation and Vitamin C treatments, and to use supplements that promote the production of skin collagen to improve the skin elasticity.

Sun Damaged Skin

The consequences of sun damage (aside from the temporary sting of sunburn) are initially invisible and are sometimes hard to comprehend. The truth is, as much as 90 percent of wrinkles, brown spots, and sagging skin what we usually think of as aging an be attributed to sun damage. What is worse, skin cancer is now the most common cancer, striking more and more people each year.

If you are still tempted to head out the door without sun protection, stop to consider what's going to happen to your skin. Melanin, the protective pigment found in the epidermis, defends the skin against sun damage by absorbing the sun's rays and dissipating the energy as heat. The more sun exposure, the more melanin the skin produces, which results in a suntan sign that ultraviolet UV rays have already damaged the skin. If sun exposure continues, the UV rays will damage cells and blood vessels in the outer layer of skin, causing the redness and painful inflammation of sunburn, actually a minor burn.

The UV rays that are not absorbed by melanin may prompt the formation of free radicals, destructive scavenger molecules. Because free radicals lack electrons, they attempt to steal electrons from other molecules, damaging the molecules in the process. Free radicals that get inside a cell can damage the cell's genetic material and cause mutations, and they may even trigger cancer.

However, the damage does not stop there. Urocranic acid, a chemical found in the epidermis, also reacts with ultraviolet light. The reaction also creates free radicals, which then break down the collagen and elastin in the skin, causing wrinkles. In addition, the sun's rays are thought to decrease immune system function within the skin, meaning that any invading organisms have a better chance of causing infection.