If you have followed me for a while, you can tell that sunscreen is my one and only. If I had to choose one skincare product among all, I would choose sunscreen without a doubt. Normally, you would have to wait to see if something is really working on your skin, but with sunscreen I noticed the improvements within a week! Sun rays are the enemy number one to keep our skin youthful and vibrant, and we are exposed to them all the time.

Even if it's gloomy, cloudy, rainy, or the end of the world, the sun is-always-there!

I have to say I am a sunscreen junkie. All of it started when I went to the dermatologist and had a magnifying glass over my skin............................................happened around ten years ago and I still have vivid images of it. The thing is we can't tell how burned our skin is until we have that evil close look to our face, and we realize how damaging the sun and the atmosphere actually is. And there is no botox, fillers or facials that will cure burned skin unless we apply sunscreen.

To understand better how it works, let's talk about sun-rays

There are two types, UVA and UVB. You probably have heard of the UVB. It's the most common one, affects the top layer of the skin, it's responsible for most of the sunburns, it's strongly linked to skin cancer, and burns unprotected skin in as little as 15 minutes. In other words, horrifying.

But then there are the UVA rays. Most of the sunscreens don't protect from this type of rays. It's responsible for around 95% of the UV radiation of the planet. OF THE PLANET! Goes through clouds and glass windows. It penetrates the second layer of the skin, causes wrinkles and premature aging, and contributes to some types of sun damage.

So now that we have heard about this, let's talk business: How do you know which sunscreen is best?

Easy, one that protects from UVA and UVB rays, SPF 40 and above, and preferable oil free. Why? Well, oil free will prevent from having clogged pores and pimples, and SPF 40+ for actual coverage and protection.

Like with any other product, the secret is how we are layering it.

The closer to the skin the better. That being said, sunscreen should be one of the first products we apply to our fresh clean face. You see, the idea is to maximize the protection of the skin, so applying it right after the toner, or serum is best.

Your cheatsheet: Toner-Serums-Sunscreen-Moisturizer-Oil. (Find my post about skincare here!)

We don't need to have a magnifying glass over our cheeks to take care of our skin. First step is sunscreen, and then boom! Young forever.

As always, thank you for reading and see you soon!

Xoxo,
Esther

Sunscreen 101: The Why and the How.