You can’t stop getting older but if you’re worried about skin aging there are certainly some factors in aging skin that you can prevent. There are a range of factors that cause aging of the skin and sun damage is one of the biggest. For the best skin care sunscreen is essential, but isn’t everything.
The component of sunlight which damages your skin is ultraviolet radiation. UVA and UVB are both present in sunlight and UVB burns your skin. But blocking UVB radiation only prevents sunburn, and there is more to preventing skin aging from ultraviolet radiation than merely preventing UVB radiation.
That’s because UVA radiation, although it doesn’t burn your skin, is primarily responsible for skin aging as well as many of the worst skin cancers.
The FDA doesn’t require the labels of sunscreens to tell us how much UVA protection is included in the sunscreen and the result was that in the summer of 2008 there were only 29 percent of sunscreens that had some UVA protection. A year later that percentage increased to 70 percent but that still means that 30 percent of sunscreens on the market have no UVA protection. The results can be skin cancer and excessive skin aging.
It’s extremely difficult to know how much sun protection you are getting from your sunscreen. And if you’re finding that you’re suffering from early skin aging it may well be because you’ve relied on sunscreen for years not knowing that the UVA component is aging your skin and may even be leading to skin cancer.
On top of this there are various ingredients in sunscreens which may damage your health such as oxybenzone which has been shown to work as a hormone disruptor and is even considered likely to cause skin cancer. And worse, some of the ingredients in sunscreen products can cause the effectiveness of the product to fail.
Consumers ought to be able to expect that their sunscreen will prevent skin sun damage such as sunburn, premature skin aging and skin cancer, however that is currently not the case and you ought to choose your sunscreen extremely carefully.
And sun protection isn’t just about using a sunscreen. In fact the first method of sun protection that you turn to should be to avoid going out in the sun during the middle of the day in the summer, or to use a long sleeved shirt and hat if you do. Sunscreen is only necessary where unavoidable.
Many women, and men, who are interested in the best anti aging skin care do not realize that a large component of skin aging is totally preventable, being caused by sun damage. Starting today make a pact with yourself that you will avoid skin sun damage whenever you can. If you do this, in combination with using the best anti aging products it’s possible to buy, then you’re well on your way towards a skin care routine that will serve you well for decades.
There are certainly some very good anti aging products, (and some ineffective ones), and using these can help reverse skin ageing, but preventing sun damage is one of the most important things you can do to combat wrinkles and skin sagging in older age.
If you’d like to learn more about preventing wrinkles and skin sagging, and also more about the best anti aging products available, then visit my website.
Visit Restore My Skin to find out more about Anti Aging Skin Care Products or more about the best Skin Sun Protection.