Sun protection made simple! — Esthétique Julie Gagné

The arrival of spring is freeing, full of lightness and renewal.

The outdoors is calling you, lounging on a patio gets you excited, and planning your vacation and the places to explore gives you hope for some well-deserved rest.

And then an idea pops up: protecting yourself from the sun. You love it, but you don't want to burn, nor do you want to miss out on a lightly tanned complexion.

How do you sort it all out and protect yourself properly?

First, let's untangle the famous SPFs (sun protection factors).

In fact, what they determine is how long you can be exposed to the sun before your skin burns. Whoa! Something smells burnt. But no, because you're protecting yourself.

What makes you burn or, preferably, tan?

UVB rays are responsible for this phenomenon. SPFs therefore serve to block these UVB rays and, contrary to what one might think, the difference between SPF 30 and SPF 60 is minimal.

Here is the protection provided by each type of sunscreen:

Little girl with bottle of sun cream sitting at tropical beach

SPF 15 blocks an average of 93% of UVB rays

SPF 30 blocks an average of 97% of UVB rays

SPF 60 blocks an average of 98% of UVB rays

SPF 70 blocks an average of 98.3% of UVB rays

The difference between each SPF is minimal, isn't it? Yet you would have thought the opposite, and I completely understand. The good news is that whatever your preference, you are protected from UVB rays.

What is very important, however, is to choose a sunscreen with “broad spectrum” protection to shield you from UVB and UVA rays.

Which formula should you choose: cream, sunscreen, spray, mineral or chemical? (What a puzzle!)

Let me untangle all of this for you very quickly.

First of all, what matters is favouring mineral over chemical origin.

Mineral-based sunscreens bounce UVB and UVA rays off the surface of the skin. In fact, they act like a garment you would have covered yourself with.

Chemical sunscreens, on the other hand, absorb UVB and UVA rays and ultimately distribute them evenly throughout the body. In the long term, this is much more harmful than the bouncing effect of mineral-based sunscreens.

Next, the key to reliable protection that is good for your health and suited to everyone is to reapply sunscreen every 2 hours and to apply a sufficient amount according to the recommendation written on the container.

There you go, you are protected and ready for a lovely stroll outdoors.