The sun could be our best friend but also our worst enemy when it comes to keeping our skin glowy and healthy. We all know that sunlight is a great source of vitamin D, which is essential for healthy bones, anti-cancer, healthy immune system, protection against dementia and brain aging, loosing excess fat, decreasing symptoms of asthma, strengthening teeth and so on. Exposure to the sun also elevates moods and make us happier!
On the other hand, sun bathing without proper sun protection can cause sunburn, premature aging, sunspots, dry scaly skin, and even cancer.
Of course, there are many ways to care for your skin while soaking up the sun and the most effective way is to prevent getting burned in the first place with products containing sun protection factor (SPF). It is recommended to use a sunscreen or sunblock with SPF 50 when you are out and about and also reapply every few hours or more if you are sweating or swimming.
So what can do you to restore your skin after a long day out in the sun?
The first thing your skin is needs is to recover its barrier function. Long exposure to sunlight causes dehydration, which needs to be corrected with more in-depth moisturisation.
Before the skin can begin its repair process it is important to carefully clean it to avoid irritation on top of the damage it suffered during the day:
Deep-cleanse the skin to remove salt and other residues such as sand, other substances and oils or lotions.
Use mild face and body exfoliants to aid in the elimination of impurities and devitalised cells.
This phase is important to prepare the skin for moisturisation and allow it to better absorb any products that you apply on it.
Then, after a good cleanse, moisturise the skin. We advise the use of a body moisturising cream to boost the skin’s ability to absorb and increase the concentration of water it lost during the day due to the effects of the sun.
Body and skin folds: it’s important that the emollient you choose has strong moisturising and cell-regeneration capabilities as solar radiation principally destroys the fibres that sustain the extracellular matrix. That’s why the sun accelerates aging because as the cells lose their structural capacity they stop contributing to skin’s the firmness.
Face and eyes: use a specific cream for your face and eye contours. Choose products that calm as well as nourish. Some products, like aloe vera, can do both.
After replenishing the skin’s moisture barrier, it is important to focus on sun spots and pigmentation that occur due to exposure to the sun. For that, we would need highly effective and potent depigmentation products to see results and quickly fade spots.
As long as you follow these steps to protect your skin adequately, there is no reason why you can’t go out and enjoy the sun in moderation worry-free!
With love,
MartiDerm Singapore