6 Ways to Protect Your Skin From the Sun

While I love the summer and adore sunshine, I have always been a bit afraid of the sun and it’s harmful rays. I’ve experienced too many burns to not be. When I was a kid, I was pretty terrible with taking the time and care to apply and reapply sunscreen (like so many kids are! I mean, who wants to stop playing so they can reapply?) but as I’ve gotten older I’ve realized just how important it is to care for my skin when I am out in the sun. I first began realizing how crucial sun-proofing my skin was when I was a teenager. I had gotten a particularly nasty burn at the Warp Tour which left little blisters along my forehead and raised freckle-size white bumps on my shoulders. My doctor told me that that was sun damaged and that I’d need to take a serious break from the sun, and going forward be way more careful. In my defense, I had wanted to be more careful that day – I remember feeling stressed about how my skin was feeling but I had been foolish and forgotten to pack sunscreen. After that experience though, I realized that sun damaged skin was pretty scary, it happened fast, but that there were things I could do to prevent it. May is skin cancer awareness month, and I feel like the dangers of the sun are something we should talk about. The fact is that it’s “sexy” to say we spend hours at the beach soaking up the sun, to be a sun worshipper, and to get super bronzed skin. Yep, it may look nice – but long term it’s going to damage your skin, and possibly cause some really serious issues. We can love the beach, adore the sun, but we all need to take our health into consideration when we’re lounging the day away on a hot sandy beach. Here’s a few tip that will help you protect your skin from the sun:

6 Ways to Protect Your Skin From the Sun

Wear Sunscreen

Captain obvious here: wear sunscreen!

Sunscreen is there to help protect your skin from the sun, so use it! While it may be a nuisance to apply, feel uncomfortable on your skin, and make you look a bit greasy – in the long run, it’s saving you a whole lotta trouble. I’d say the pro’s of sunscreen way out weight the cons.

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Reapply Sunscreen Regularly

Okay, one more obvious tip: Reapply Your Sunscreen Often!

What’s the point of applying sunscreen in the first place if you’re not going to apply regularly? You need to reapply on average about every 1.5 – 2 hours, or sooner if you’ve gone swimming. Always read the directions on your sunscreen bottle to ensure you’re using it the best way possible.    

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Rock a Hat

I love hats year-round, but during the summer I especially appreciate them. If you follow me on Instagram, than you may have seen that I got a pretty unfortunate sunburn on my nose (pretty shocking too since I was super careful about wearing sunscreen!)  – but I probably would’ve been able to avoid it if I was wearing a hat! This year,  I am really liking the look of a casual baseball cap.

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Wear Sunglasses

Your eyes are just as important to protect as your skin is. Sunglasses look chic, hide tired eyes (an essential for me!), and they protect your eyes from the sun. Seriously, you don’t want to burn your eyes – it’s super painful.

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Avoid Peak Sun-Times

While it may not be fun to chill under a sun umbrella or to stick indoors, avoiding the peak hours of the sun is the best way to avoid longterm sun damage. From 10AM to 4PM, the sun is at its peak and it can seriously damage and burn your skin. In the long run, sitting out all day in the sun is just not worth it.    

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Wear a Lip Balm with SPF

Rather than risking getting a sunburn on your lips, wear a lip balm that has SPF. There are tons of great options available for those who want a lip balm with a tint of colour, or you can easily find a cheap clear lip balm with SPF in it. My personal favourite lip balms are the Fresh Lip treatments and they have SPF 15.