Full disclosure: I don’t like the sun. Nor do I like sunscreen.
I’m a big hat, hide-in-the-shade kinda gal. I’m not blessed with skin that tolerates – or even copes – with the megawatt rays of Summer Downunder, so I aim for sunshine in teensy weensy doses. The average Aussie burns in less than 15 minutes on a hot summer’s day without sunscreen. In fact, the Cancer Council says up to 45% of us get burned on a summer weekend because too many of us think we’re covered when we’re not.
Even the experts recommend clothes, hats and shade as a first line of defence – physical barriers are effective if you’re keen to avoid burning, but that isn’t enough on its own if you’re worried about skin damage. The sun is responsible for roughly 80% of skin ageing (think wrinkles and pesky pigmentation). The rest is genetics, which you can’t do much about, but if you’re even vaguely interested in keeping skin youthful, you’ll have to use sunscreen. And quite a lot more than you might think – one teaspoon per limb and half a teaspoon for your face, neck and ears every 2 hours.
Sounds simple enough, but finding a decent sunscreen is a minefield for sensitive skin types. Chemical sunscreens are a no-go – it’s not uncommon to suffer dermatitis from chemical filters, but they’re also environmentally damaging. Hawaii has banned ingredients including octinoxate and oxybenzone entirely to try and avoid further reef damage – fair enough too, as an estimated 14 tonnes of sunscreen washes into our oceans every year.
Physical sunscreens primarily use zinc and titanium dioxide to physically reflect the sun’s rays. They’re not perfect either – they often leave a ghostly white hue on skin. Zinc works by physically blocking the sun’s rays from hitting the skin, but that physical barrier is often visible unless the zinc is pulverised into teeny tiny molecules, though we’ve come a long way – there are some decent zinc-based sunscreens on the market these days. Here are three I swear by:
- Sun and Earth All Day Cream SPF 30 is tough to get on (you’ll need oodles of patience, it’s rock hard) but it’s worth it. The light brown tint comes in 3 shades (‘Sunny’ is ace for a light tan) and the cocoa butter gives it a light chocolately scent. This is the only sunscreen my sporty son will use and it has excellent staying power. A winner.
- Simple As That SPF 30 Natural Sunscreen lotion is favoured by my little girl. It’s fairly easy to rub in, doesn’t have a strong fragrance and doesn’t leave her already pale skin ghostly.
- Sunbutter Sunscreen SPF 50 is my current fave for the beach. It’s coconut-oil based, which my super dry skin loves, but oily skins may find it slippery. Coconut oil is occlusive by nature so it can cause breakout for some people, but my skin loves it. It has no fragrance, leaves zero white hue on skin and feels delightfully nourishing.
Is there a zinc-based sunscreen that you’ve tried and loved?