Sunscreen is a product that everybody should be using, yet choosing the right sunscreen isn’t an easy feat. Go with the wrong product and not only do you run the risk of failing to adequately protect your skin from the sun, but you could also end up dealing with a number of other skin issues.

Fortunately, with Venofye here to help, you won’t need to worry about making the wrong sunscreen choice. We’re about to share some top tips to help ensure that the sunscreen you pick is the perfect one for your skin!

Why Do You Need to Use Sunscreen in the First Place?

Before we get started, let’s quickly go over why you need to be using sunscreen in the first place. It’s a product that’s advised by just about every health expert out there, yet many people still struggle to fully understand its importance.

Each time the sun’s UV rays come into contact with your skin, they cause some level of damage. Sometimes, this can be seen immediately in the form of redness and sunburns. However, even if your skin doesn’t appear to have changed in any way after sun exposure, damage will have still occurred in the deeper layers of your skin. This damage accumulates, leading to wrinkles, discoloration, sagging skin, and more. In fact, research shows that 80% of the wrinkles and dark spots that develop on the skin with age could have been avoided with the diligent use of sunscreen.

Of course, let’s not forget that UV damage can cause skin cancer too. Sunburns drastically increase your risk of developing melanoma while cumulative sun exposure is linked to squamous cell and basal cell skin cancer. It goes without saying that skin cancer can sometimes be fatal, underlining the importance of keeping your skin protected from the sun.

Go for SPF 30 or Higher

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SPF stands for sun protection factor. It indicates how well a sunscreen protects against UVB rays. These are the rays that cause sunburns, dark spots, DNA mutations in skin cells, and skin cancer.

Different sunscreens have different SPF ratings. While products with an SPF of just 15 or 20 may promise to protect your skin, they won’t do so sufficiently. Instead, you need a sunscreen with a minimum SPF of 30 if you want to ensure that your skin is adequately protected. 

When it comes to products with an SPF higher than 30, these are worth considering if you have severely sensitive skin. For everyone else, the difference in the amount of protection provided is minuscule, yet you’ll end up paying a lot more for a higher SPF. So long as you keep our other tips in mind too, SPF 30 is what the majority of people should aim for.

This is why we formulated the Venofye Orchard Bee Brilliance Cream SPF 30 in the way that we did. With SPF 30, it will provide all of the protection that you need. Even better, this sunscreen also offers broad-spectrum protection. As you’re about to find out, this is also very important…

Check for Broad-Spectrum Protection

As we mentioned earlier, SPF relates to UVB protection. However, the sun produces two types of damaging rays, so what about UVA protection? With UVA rays primarily responsible for prematurely aging the skin, you don’t want to end up dealing with UVA damage later in life!

This is where broad-spectrum protection comes in. This term indicates that a sunscreen will protect against both UVA and UVB rays. 

Unlike UVB protection, which is measured with an SPF rating, a star system is used to depict UVA protection. If you see one star displayed on a product’s packaging, this indicates a very low level of protection. On the other hand, five stars would mean that the sunscreen is highly effective at shielding against UVA rays.

Chemical vs Mineral

Another of the important decisions you’ll need to make when choosing a sunscreen is deciding whether to go with a chemical or a mineral formula. Both work well at protecting the skin from sun damage, yet they each function in quite a different way.

Chemical sunscreens work by absorbing UV rays. A chemical reaction then takes place, after which those absorbed rays are emitted from the skin in the form of heat. Meanwhile, mineral sunscreens deflect UV rays, bouncing them away from the skin. 

Which is better? This depends on your skin type, as well as the color of your skin. Mineral sunscreens tend to be much thicker, meaning that they can contribute to acne breakouts if you have oily skin. They also often leave a white cast behind, which is particularly noticeable on darker skin tones. However, their gentle and non-irritating nature makes them a good choice for sensitive skin types.

Chemical sunscreens, on the other hand, tend to be much lighter in consistency. As a result, they’re favored by those with oily and combination skin types, as well as by anyone who doesn’t want to deal with an overly thick sunscreen. 

Check the Use-by Date

Chances are that when you buy food items, you always check the use-by date. However, this is rarely done when it comes to skincare products, even though these products expire too.

Of course, with skincare, it’s not always so easily visible when a product has reached its use-by date. It may look, feel, and smell completely normal, which is why many think that expired skincare is still safe to use.

This might be the case for some products. However, when it comes to sunscreen, you need to make sure that the product you’re using is in date. Expired sunscreens won’t be as effective and will fail to provide you with the amount of protection that you’re expecting. This can be dangerous as it will mean that you’ll think your skin is safe from the sun when it actually isn’t. 

Many ingredients also oxidize over time. If you use an expired sunscreen that also happens to contain oxidized ingredients, you’ll likely end up with skin irritation while accelerating the skin aging process.

Incorporating Other Beneficial Ingredients

Back in the day, sunscreens used to be solely about protecting the skin from the sun. However, there are now so many multi-tasking sunscreens out there, giving you even more bang for your buck. 

Take the Venofye sunscreen that we shared earlier as an example. In addition to its UV filters, it also contains everything from aloe vera to vitamin A to green tea extract. This means that not only will it protect your skin from the sun, but it will also provide an array of antioxidants that will soothe and revive your complexion.

Making the Most of Your Sunscreen

Now that you know how to pick the perfect sunscreen for your skin, let’s talk about using it correctly to maximize its potential:

Use the Right Amount

First things first, don’t be stingy when it comes to how much sunscreen you use. Most people don’t actually use enough sunscreen to receive the SPF rating displayed on the label. 

If you want to make sure that your skin is fully protected, you’ll need a nickel-sized dollop to cover your face. If you’re applying it to your body too, you’ll need about 30ml worth of sunscreen. This is just slightly more than what a shot glass would hold.

Know Where Your Sunscreen Fits Into Your Skincare Routine

People often assume that sunscreen should always be applied right at the end of a skincare routine. However, this isn’t always the case…

We’ve already talked about the differences between chemical and mineral sunscreens, in terms of how they work. Well, this also affects where in your skincare routine your sunscreen fits.

Experts recommend that chemical sunscreens should be applied before you use a moisturizer. This allows your skin to absorb it more efficiently, rather than some of it being blocked by your moisturizer. However, mineral sunscreens don’t penetrate the skin. They need to sit over the top of the skin, meaning that they should be applied after you moisturize. 

Of course, go with Venofye’s SPF moisturizer and you won’t need to worry about this order! Since it’s a sunscreen and a face cream in one, this single product can be applied at the end of your skincare routine, where it will both moisturize and protect your skin.

Apply Your Sunscreen to Every Inch of Exposed Skin

It’s easy to accidentally miss out on small areas of your skin when applying sunscreen. This can be disastrous as you’ll think that your skin is protected but, in reality, it will still be soaking up all of that UV damage.

Be very diligent about ensuring that you apply your sunscreen to every inch of exposed skin. This includes your eyelids, around your ears, exposed parts of your scalp, the backs of your hands, and your feet. Those areas are commonly forgotten about when sunscreen is applied, so don’t make that mistake!

Apply Your Sunscreen at the Right Times

It can take up to 30 minutes for the skin to absorb sunscreen. This means that slapping some on immediately before heading outdoors could leave your skin vulnerable to damage for the next half hour. Ideally, you should be applying your sunscreen 30 minutes before you step outside. This way, it will have enough time to kick into action before your skin is actually exposed to the sun.

Reapplications are also essential. Most sunscreens will only provide protection for a couple of hours, after which their power will quickly wane. This means that you’ll need to reapply your sunscreen every two hours to keep protection topped up. If you happen to be swimming or heavily sweating, you may need to reapply your SPF every hour.

Summary

Many would say that sunscreen is the most important part of any skincare routine. This makes it important to ensure that you’re using the right one…as well as using it correctly! Fortunately, with the tips that we’ve shared, you won’t have to worry about going wrong. Keep our advice in mind and you’ll be able to keep your skin protected from sun damage, ensuring a healthy and happy complexion for many years to come!

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