You are absolutely right, staring at the selection of sunscreens in any store is enough to make your head spin. How do I choose? Should I pick one with a kid’s label since I have kiddos? Is the one with the highest SPF the best? Maybe I get the one with the masculine packaging because I don’t want to look like I gave up my man card.
But we have to make a choice because sunscreen is necessary. The threat of skin cancer is not overhyped—more skin cancer cases are diagnosed each year than all other cancers combined. On top of that, exposure to the sun can make us age faster. (Remember Mary’s neighbor in Something About Mary?)
The people who design sunscreen packaging want you to think it’s all about SPF but I don’t agree. SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor and it tells you how long it will take before you turn red in the sun. But SPF only is based on UVB rays and when it comes to sun exposure we need to be careful about UVB and UVA. If you must go on SPF alone choose something that is in the 30-50 range. However, my recommendation is that you look for a broad spectrum sunscreen. The FDA has requirements that must be met before a sunscreen can put this on their package and it means you will be protected against both UVB and UVA wavelengths.
If you really want to protect yourself against all sunscreen confusion we carry a line of products in our office that I believe are some of the best on the market. Choose these and you’ll never get burned—in the sun or with a bad choice of sunscreen at the store.