Why our skin needs sunscreen cosmetics so much
The danger of "getting cold feet"
However, another month – and the mania of tanning will cover almost all women and many men, so it's time to take care of sunscreens.
Despite all the frightening statistics on the increase in the incidence of skin cancer, which doctors give every year on the eve of the beach holiday season, ignoring the claims of designers and stylists that tanning has not been in fashion for a long time, the number of sunbathers on the beaches does not decrease. Of course, the majority of those who want to "get bronzed" are women, although solar radiation is dangerous and harmful for their skin: excessive sunburn (and not only natural, but also artificial – in a solarium) leads to photo-aging of the skin, the early appearance of wrinkles and age spots.
Today, many dermatologists insist that manufacturers of sunscreens indicate on their packaging not only the protection factor, but also the protective factor of aging. The period of time allowed by this indicator for sunbathing is about a third shorter than the period of action of the sunscreen filters that the cream applied to the skin contains. It should be understood that sunscreen cosmetics, despite its name, does not give the skin one hundred percent protection from ultraviolet radiation, it only reduces the degree of aggressive and harmful effects of the sun and facilitates the skin's process of developing its own protective mechanisms.
Always on the lookoutDermatologists in recent years have recommended using "protectors" throughout the year, even in our northern latitudes, changing the protection factor depending on the season.
In spring and summer, it is advised to use products for the face and exposed areas of the body with a higher factor of protection from solar radiation (20-45 FPS, depending on your skin type and location – in the city or at sea), in winter and autumn – with a lower (5-15 FPS). But in Russia, due to climatic conditions, there is no culture of constant use of sunscreens. Well, why, Russians ask, should we use sunscreen in winter or early spring if we don't see the sun for weeks? Therefore, in the best case, people remember about sunscreen cosmetics when they are going to a seaside resort, to the mountains and in the summer to the country.
Ladies who abuse sunbathing, the skin is often dehydrated, irritated, with peeling and rashes, covered with a fine grid of wrinkles. It turns out that in the pursuit of a tan, which, according to women, gives them a rested, refreshed and rejuvenated appearance, they lose more than they gain, causing real harm to their appearance and their health. Namely: premature aging of the skin, the appearance of wrinkles, age spots and hyperpigmentation, malignant neoplasms of the skin, including one of the most dangerous oncological diseases – melanoma. The main risk factor for melanoma is ultraviolet radiation and abuse of natural tanning and tanning beds.
In southern European countries – Spain, Italy, France, Portugal, where solar activity is much higher than in Russia and where cloudless days make up most of the year, many people use protective equipment in winter and summer. In the cosmetic departments of supermarkets, pharmacies and specialty stores, sunscreen lines are sold all year round. In addition to creams, sprays, emulsions and milk intended for use on beaches and ski resorts, products containing sunscreen filters intended for daily consumption are very popular in Spain. They are not as thick as those used at sea, and they are applied to the skin immediately before leaving the house. Every Spaniard has such a cream in the bathroom and in her cosmetic bag, or even several – for hands, for the body and for the face. Japanese women are simply obsessed with bleaching cosmetics and sun protection: from head to toe they are smeared with sunscreen, wear shirts or blouses with long sleeves even in extreme heat, or they can wear a T-shirt with long cotton knitted gloves above the elbow. On the head – necessarily a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses in the whole face, the neck is hidden in a lush scarf or shawl. In tops that open the shoulders, back and decollete to the scorching sun – the most vulnerable areas of the body to ultraviolet radiation – only careless tourists walk here.
Light factorMost consumers are already more or less versed in the information that is given on the packaging of sunscreens.
The main indicator for the consumer, which determines the cost of the product, is the coefficient of its sun protection factor (LF or SF), depending on the quality and quantity of filters that protect the skin from UVA, UVB radiation and other components. The higher the protection factor, the more expensive the product. Also, the cost is affected by the promotion of the cosmetic brand (sunscreen lines of well-known brands of the luxury segment, intended for sale in pharmacies are much more expensive than mass cosmetics), the presence or absence of chemicals harmful to the skin (parabels and others), the narrow specialization of the product (hypoallergenic, children's). But in any case, sunscreen cosmetics a priori cannot be cheap, since its production is a high–tech and expensive process. The more modern the filters, the more effective the cosmetics. For example, cosmetics for people prone to allergic reactions contain not chemical, but physical filters – the so-called micropigments. These ultrafine minerals (zinc oxide, titanium dioxide) do not filter out harmful sun rays, but simply reflect them from the skin.
Only protective equipment with a protection factor of at least FPS10 blocks solar radiation ("blockers" of ultraviolet). Protection with a factor of 20, 30.45 is recommended for children, people with fair skin covered with pink freckles, those who quickly burn and blush under the sun, as well as those who are forced to stay outdoors for a long time.
How to choose your protection factorTo determine which coefficient of protection from sunlight you need, you need to know your skin phototype.
You can determine the safe period of sun exposure for you as follows: the time during which your skin tans and does not turn red (from 2 to 30 minutes; for most people it is 15 minutes), multiply by the index indicated on the package of sunscreen. For example, if you can stay in the sun for 10 minutes without harm to your health, then a protective agent with SF15 will increase your safe period to 150 minutes.
Sunscreens are now available in various forms. Many people choose, focusing only on their personal habits and tastes: someone likes fatter creams, someone likes light sprays that are easily applied and quickly absorbed into the skin, and someone likes to sunbathe, smeared with oil. So tanning oils are the most unreliable means of protection from sunlight, they provide a minimal barrier. The oil protection factor is 3, 5, rarely 8. Oils are intended for naturally swarthy people who easily and quickly tan and never burn, as well as for those cases when you spend a lot of time in water (the oil texture is not washed off as quickly as cream or milk). Tropical tanning oils, which everyone has been so passionate about in recent years, do not contain sunscreen filters at all.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru30.04.2013