Saturday 25 May 2013

SPF - Sun Protection Factor ~ Life

I'm no expert or a dermatologist but for the longest time I wondered what SPF stood for, and whether higher a number meant better protection.

It is sunscreen season and we should all wear sunscreen to protect our skin so we stay young and healthy.  Technically we should be wearing it all year round but most people don't stay out long enough for it to matter or like me who don't see the sun because of my hours.

SPF stands for - Sun Protection Factor. So what does that mean?
It tells you how long you can stay in the sun without burning from UVB light.
If you burn under the sun in 30 minutes x 30 SPF = 900 minutes (15 hours) you can stay under the sun without burning.

Sounds great, right?  But there are a number of factors that affect the calculation so it is not necessarily  correct - like most of the time we don't put enough sunscreen on, depending on the time of the day because late afternoon is when the sun is the strongest, and how much sunscreen has been absorbed into your skin.

If you see the term "Broad Spectum" it means it protects your skin from both UVA and UVB

So the big question: Is there a difference between the SPF levels? We have seen SPF 30 to SPF 110.  According to CBC's Marketplace there is really no difference but only increasing the protection by a few percent. SPF 30 gives you 96.7% protection and SPF 70 gives you 98.3%.  Apparently, there is no sunscreen that gives you 100% protection and once applied, we need to re-apply because after a few hours it is gone.  It's recommended to re-apply every two hours.  Overall, there is no reason to spend the extra money for a SPF 110 where there is only a small difference.  So you ask why do they make SPF 110?  One answer is marketing.  We all think higher SPF is better so we shell out the extra few bucks.




The video is a few years old but the theory is still the same.



What are your thoughts?  Which SPF do you purchase?

11 comments:

  1. Good post, really interesting. Well I usually go for 30 SPF, and I think I've been fine throughout the years, although if I go on vacation like in Cuba, I will use a higher one, 40-60 SPF plus tanning oil haha.

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    1. Thanks. I would still pick up the higher SPF if there is no price difference.

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  2. Hello, HC.
    I love this post.
    You are a Mythbuster. So many of the things you wrote about I believed to be true. Thank you for giving me the facts, Happy Chinadoll. Now I can make informed choices and save myself from being fooled by marketing now that I have the low down. Perfect time of year for this post. :)

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    1. LOL, I am no Myth buster but thank you. I would love to try to make the coke and mentos rockets and share it with my kids. They will have a kick out of it.
      This was something I discovered and thought about sharing...

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  3. I knew about what SPF stood for and meant, but I hadn't extrapolated to see how spending more on products with higher SPF may not be worth the extra money. Great breakdown!

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  4. I get the higher SPF if the price is the same too. The waterproof sports spray hubby likes for work only comes in an SPF 60 so he uses that.

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  5. This is all really good information - thank you! I didn't know about the minute differences between the different levels of SPF.
    patricia(dot)pickett(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. I'm glad to help. Like myself, not many people knows about this.

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  6. Really interesting stuff! I didn't know about 30 and 110 lack of difference in protection!

    Thanks for the info! We always smear suncreen on ever part of our skin that's exposed to the sun (even in the winter)

    RAFFLECOPTER NAME is Anne Taylor

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  7. We purchase SPF 30 - but I didn't really know the difference was so little % of protection between the ranges of SPF.

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  8. I never knew any of this. Thanks for the information. I'm horrible about remembering to wear sunscreen.

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