The Truth About...Sun Cream

From practical tips and inconvenient truths to bottle decoding, we set you straight about sun care.

- 

Which factor should I be wearing? It’s vital to choose the right protection for your skin. ‘The SPF level pertains to the amount of time a person can spend in the sun without burning, based on their skin type,’ explains Dr Tom Mammone, vice-president of Skin Physiology and Pharmacology for Clinique. So, say your skin starts to burn after 15 minutes in the sun, an SPF of 30 will give you 30 x 15 minutes of protection, which equates to over seven hours. ‘If skin becomes wet, reapply cream. Otherwise, it is recommended that sunscreen be reapplied every two hours,’ says Dr Mammone. According to Abi Cleeve, MD at Ultrasun UK, adults should wear a minimum of SPF30 while in the UK, and SPF50 in hotter climates. ‘We test all our sun protection to a maximum of eight hours’ continuous sun exposure,’ says Abi.