One thing great about Singapore is our sunny weather! Though we definitely do love our air-con and indoor playground but with such lovely weather and so many outdoor attractions, Singapore is undoubtedly favoured for our sunshine!
With all that sunlight however, it is also important that we need to protect ourselves from the sun’s UV rays! Not just in Singapore alone, sunscreen is vital in everyone’s daily routine and for good reasons.
We dived in with Banana Boat’s latest Simply Protect range to see the difference as compared to other sunscreens and with our medical experts, here’s 4 reasons to why that bottle of sunscreen is important for you and the family!
1. The sun’s UVA and UVB rays are what you need to protect your skin from
UVB rays hit on the epidermis (the outer layer of your skin). When your epidermis is irritated, it becomes red or appears swollen, which end up looking like a tan. This causes age spots, freckles and pigmentation.
UVA rays however goes deeper into the skin and can affect the DNA of the skin cells. This usually appears very red and irritated and is the main cause for sunburns! This causes wrinkling, aging of the skin and obviously more damage to the skin.
Unfortunately you don’t get to choose which rays hits your skin. i.e. You got to protect from BOTH rays. Naturally, that means…
2. EVERYONE NEEDS IT!
According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, sunscreen use can help prevent skin cancer by protecting you from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays. Also, it is possible for anyone to get skin cancer. Hence protection from the sun’s harmful rays is absolutely necessary.
3. Children especially need it because of their delicate skin
Parents should note that babies younger than 6 months do need to avoid exposure to the sun’s rays unless otherwise advised by your paediatrician.
It is however still important to maintain an active lifestyle with a little bit of sun. Parents of infants and toddlers of 6 months and above should opt for a broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen with at least an SPF 30 or higher to all skin surfaces not covered up by clothing according to the American Academy of Dermatology.
Parents should always do a sun protection check with our children before heading out into the great outdoors. Do not forget to reapply sunscreen every hour or so to get the maximum protection.
4. Even beauty gurus and artistes are doing it – But are they doing enough?
We are talking people who opt to choose products with SPF value inside or pull out their umbrellas when they are outdoors. It is still not enough though!
That’s the reason to why many people opt for an oil-free non-greasy based sunscreen to keep their pores unclogged and goes on the skin quickly!
With that in mind, we found out what were the top 3 usual mistakes in sunscreen application!
1. How much SPF is enough SPF – Is higher enough?
Sun Protection Factor (SPF) measures how much lesser UVB rays will hit your skin with sunscreen on. For simplicity:
SPF 30 means that you are 30 times more covered than without sunscreen – around 96.7% of your skin. SPF 50 means that you are 50 times more covered than without sunscreen – around 98.2% of your skin .
It is not the case of more is more. But more of what you really need! Which also leads to the point.
2. The Need to Reapply at least EVERY 2 HOURS
Perspiration or coming in contact with water can easily wash off some sunscreens and even for better brands with waterproofing properties, it can be rubbed off after a few hours. That’s the reason to why we should always reapply our sunscreen every two hours.
3. Ingredients in Sunscreen – The more ingredients, the better the protection
This is when really less is more. Parabens or added oils and fragrances in most sunscreens can be considered irritants to skin and are not necessary in strong and broad spectrum sunscreens made for every day use.
This also means that unless you are constantly exposed to the sun, you can definitely look into a sunscreen which is a lower possibility of irritating your skin.
Recommended by the Skin Cancer Foundation, Banana Boat’s latest Simply Protect range and its amazing benefits to protect our family from the sun’s harmful rays.
With 25% fewer ingredients such oxybenzone, parabens or added oils and fragrances taken out from the Simply Protect range, and yet achieve the broad spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen protects your children from harmful UVA and UVB rays – We can all have a worry-free day of fun in the sun .
The mild, tear free formula allows you to protect your kids without the tears! Banana Boat Kids is nongreasy and goes on quickly and easily so your kids can get straight to the fun.
And for all our active families, Banana Boat Simply Protect Kids Lotion stays on in 7 conditions* through sun, pool water, ocean water, wind, sweat, sand and extreme heat up to 37 degree!
Banana Boat’s Simply Protect range is available in all leading pharmacy and major supermarket! For more sun protection tips, check out https://www.bananaboat.com.au/
