Say hello to warmer days, and refresh your summer Suncare with sunscreen, sun safety, and seasonal skincare.
While the first “official” day of summer isn’t until the summer solstice – usually around 21 December – the sun has been making itself known in our Aotearoa skies for several weeks now. This means the days are longer, the nights are shorter, the weather is warmer, and shorts and sandals are a regular part of our daily wardrobe. Skincare is switching up with the season change, too, with sun protection (summer suncare) becoming more important as the sun’s rays shine on us for longer each day.
While sunshine is a mood-booster, and we need the vitamin D we get from its rays to help build and maintain healthy bones, the UV light from the sun is really bad for our skin. It’s responsible for not only skin cancer, but it is also a major cause of skin ageing.
The UV light we need to be concerned about is UVA and UVB. These are the rays that will damage our skin and cause skin ageing as well as skin cancers and suppressed skin immune function.
UVA light makes up about 95% of the UV light that reaches the earth’s surface, and deeply penetrates the skin, damaging skin cells and injuring the skin’s DNA. UVB light is the main cause of skin reddening and sunburn, and damages the upper layers of the skin. UVB light exposure is what we need to help the body produce vitamin D, but we need to be careful about this.
What are the signs of skin ageing from sun damage? Just about everything you would expect – wrinkles, fine lines, pigmentation spots, crow’s feet, and rosacea are some of the typical signs of sun damage to skin. Talk to your beauty therapist about products or treatments that may help with these signs of ageing.
Other more serious signs are atypical moles, age spots that change colour or shape, adtinic keratoses – scaly rough patches that look like warts or horns – and pokilpderma of civatte (“sun ageing”) which causes your neck and cheeks to become discoloured reddish-brown. If you notice any of these symptoms, you need to see your GP to be checked for skin cancer.
Summer suncare starts simply. First, and this may seem obvious, but don’t ever bake in the sun on purpose. It’s important to protect your skin at all times, but particularly between the hours of 10am and 4pm from September through to April, as those are the times the sun is at its hottest, brightest, and highest. Avoid getting sunburned at all costs. As Sunsmart NZ says, “Sunburn at any age can increase your change of developing skin cancer.”
Second, “slip, slop, slap, wrap and wrap” is a catchy little phrase that isn’t just for kids – being sun smart means:
Third, if you love the look of tanned skin or a sunkissed complexion, fake it! Self-tan and spray tan are two excellent options that can look very natural – the products have evolved a great deal in recent years, so you needn’t be afraid of turning orange. Tinted moisturiser will help give your face a bit of natural colour, and shimmer spray will add a hint of a glow to your body.
At Gaia Day Spa we love Germaine de Capuccini Timexpert SUN Tinted Anti-Ageing Protective Fluid SPF50 – advanced anti-ageing suncare designed for skin that needs stronger and more effective protection against wrinkles, dark spots and protects skin against pollution.
When you use a moisturiser or sunscreen with SPF, you’ll see a number next to it – and generally, the higher the number, the better protection. “SPF” stands for “sun protection factor” and tells you how much of the sun’s rays is filtered – how much of the UV radiation your skin will be protected from.
UV radiation is what harms our skin, eyes, and bodies. Sunscreen forms a protective barrier on the skin and absorbs or reflects some of the sun’s UV radiation. A broad-spectrum sunscreen reduces the intensity of both UVA and UVB radiation, so check that your sunscreen is broad-spectrum for maximum protection.
Sunscreen with SPF 30-50 is considered “high protection” and SPF50+ is considered “very high protection”, but remember, no sunscreen offers 100% protection. All sunscreens, no matter how high the SPF, must be reapplied at least every two hours, and after swimming, water sports, or sweating.
Part of summer suncare meand you need to apply sunscreen 20 minutes before you go out into the sun, to allow it time to form that protective barrier on your skin, and you need to reapply every two hours. An adult needs about seven teaspoons of sunscreen to protect the entire body, so if your bottle of sunscreen is lasting you all summer and you’re out and about a lot, then you’re not using enough.
At Gaia Day Spa we love Germaine de Capuccini Timexpert Sun SPF50+ Invisible Protective Stick, which provides transparent, non-sticky, and non-greasy protection to your face and body. Great for outdoor sports and when you’re in intense sunlight, it’s perfect for delicate areas like your cheekbones, nose, around the eyes and ears, and even protects moles, tattoos, dark spots, and scars. And you can apply it over makeup, too.
Many people are concerned that they might not get enough vitamin D if they are “mummified” in clothing, hats, and sunscreen all the time. But in New Zealand, it’s generally easy enough to get vitamin D. In fact, you only need 30 seconds to three minutes of exposure of big areas of your body (your arms and legs) to the sun near the middle of the day to get enough for your body’s daily needs. Staying out in the sun longer in the hopes of boosting your vitamin D also won’t work, because your body will stop making vitamin D after just a few minutes.
While the sun is the biggest culprit when it comes to skin ageing, it’s important to remember that sunbeds, tanning booths, and sun lamps are also bad for your skin, producing harmful levels of UV radiation. Sunbeds are not a safe way to boost your vitamin D.
You can also find vitamin D naturally in foods like oily fish, liver, milk, and egg yolks, and some foods are fortified with extra vitamin D. If you are concerned you might be deficient in vitamin D, talk to your GP as they may be able to recommend a supplement.
Get in touch with the skincare experts at Gaia Day Spa if you are concerned about the effects of the sun ageing your skin.
