The sunscreen scene

Tips and tricks for the sunscreen scene.

The one constant in everyone’s medicine cabinet, regardless of age or season, should be sunscreen. Dr. Serena Mraz, a dermatologist with Solano Dermatology Associates, has a few tips:

•    Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen (SPF 15 or higher) that provides protection against both UVA and UVB rays. These include physical blockers zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, and others such as benzophenones (oxybenzone), cinnamates (octylmethyl, cinnamate and cinoxate), sulisobenzone, salicylates and avobenzone.

•    Sunscreens should be applied 15 to 30 minutes before going outdoors, and reapplied every two hours or after swimming or heavy perspiration. One ounce—enough to fill a shot glass—is considered the right amount of sunscreen needed to cover the exposed areas of the body. “If you are using the correct amount,” Mraz adds, “a bottle of sunscreen should not last you very long.”

•    Clothing with SPF, hats (a 5-inch brim minimum) and shade are also common-sense approaches to sun protection. You can’t get 100 percent protection, but you can get close.

•    Despite labels, there’s really no such thing as a waterproof sunscreen. (“The FDA is supposedly going to have that labeling removed one of these days,” Mraz adds.) That being said, those sunscreens tend to stay on a little bit better than those that are not. (But still: Reapply!)

•    People with sensitive skin generally fare best with micronized zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide. These inert ingredients do not sting or burn at all. (Zinc oxide is often used to relieve irritated skin.)

•    Sunscreen sprays tend to have a lot of alcohol in them and are not recommended for sensitive skin or for the face, unless you spray it into your hands and then apply to your face. They are good for hard-to-reach areas such as the back and for moving targets such as children.

•    As far as kids go, most sunscreens for children are all about marketing. For example, Mraz says, “Coppertone Spectra 3 for adults is the exact same product as the product for kids—but in a different bottle.”

Mraz’s ultimate recommendations? “Most important is for patients to find a vehicle they like, so they actually use it. It doesn’t protect at all if left in the bottle!”

For more tips, tricks and information, read our 2007 story Tis the Season... for Sun.

Want to look your best this summer season? Read Shelley Elvis' tips for summer beauty!

Need some definition? Visit our skin care glossary.

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