As some of you may recall from a previous post, I’ve recently discovered the wonders of moisturizer. My skin is thanking me by being more radiant and throwing fewer temper tantrums in the form of break-outs. I’ve been falling in love with skin care, enjoying the delicious sensations of bumpy exfoliants, cooling toners, and sweet, creamy moisturizers. Now that it’s summer and I find myself trying to be outside as much as possible, my skin-care thoughts have turned to sunscreen. I should be using it everyday, shouldn’t I?
I heard the government issued new guidelines for labeling and testing sun screens. I googled. I found it. I viewed as a pdf. Holy smokes, I said to myself, this thing is 46 pages long. I skimmed: “The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is issuing this document to address labeling and effectiveness…The document also identifies specific claims that render a product that is subject to this rule misbranded…” Ugh—46 pages of this? The table of contents has roman numerals up to XIII! If I am too lazy to apply sunscreen daily, do you think I had the patience for this? I did not. I do not. But, I didn’t give up, and as I was perusing my favorite section of The Times I came across an article by the fabulous Jane Brody. (Who, by the way, has great skin. I bet she uses a moisturizer and a sunscreen.) Jane cleared up a few things for me.
Most notably:
No one uses as much sunscreen as those participating in product tests.
More expensive is not always better.
Re-Application is always necessary.
Choose broad-spectrum between 30-50 SPF.
Yes, Portland, the sun comes right through the clouds.
Wearing a pretty hat is a good idea
Most of us probably had these tips and ideas stored somewhere, packed away for the winter, in our minds already. I’m glad the FDA is working harder to keep us healthier, but in the end it’s up to each of us to protect ourselves and our families to the best of our abilities. Let’s give it a try this summer, shall we? Let’s care for our skin. Nobody wants skin caner, and everyone wants to be radiant.
Luckily, for those of us who are still in the dating stage with our skin care regimen, Root carries a sunscreen that can be used as a moisturizer too!