Let's talk sun care and sun screens!

Parent Cafe
1

<p>Am doing a project for a client on this topic, and could use some fresh points of view. So, here are some starter topics; talk amongst yourselves :-)…</p>

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<p>How would you describe what the sun does to your skin? Is this good or bad? Do you seek out this effect, or put effort into avoiding this effect?</p>

<p>What is your overall philosophy, approach, and goals when it comes to caring for your skin in the sun?</p>

<p>How does this impact the activities that you do in the sun? What management strategies do you have? (don’t do those activities, do them only in early morning / late afternoon, be sure to wear a hat, always put on sunscreen before leave the house, etc.)</p>

<p>What are your philosophies as to when or whether sunscreen is needed? (only if sun actively shining, going to be outside for more than X minutes,only if wearing clothing that exposes parts of body not normally exposed, etc.)</p>

<p>How do the above thoughts change if you are thinking about your face versus your body?</p>

<p>What are the things that prompt you to use sunscreen? (appearance, not desiring tan, concern with skin cancer, etc.)</p>

<p>What are your frustrations with sunscreen / sun protection products now?</p>

<p>If you value the look of a tan (which you may or may not - who I am to judge), are there other ways that you achieve that look that don’t involve the sun? (e.g., self-tanners, bronzers, tanning booths)</p>

<p>How diligent are you in this area? If you aren’t as diligent as you would like, what prevents you from doing so?</p>

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<p>r u serious</p>

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<p>Yep. This is the parent cafe and we often talk about other issues not related to college. If you aren’t interested, please feel free to skip the thread or this forum.</p>

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<p>In Maine, I’m just happy to get sun at all! I put sunscreen on if I’m going to the beach, but otherwise I don’t think about it. I know I should, but I don’t.</p>

5

<p>I am particularly diligent about using sunscreen on my face and my hands. I don’t want to wind up with brown spots on my hands.</p>

<p>But of course I’m not nearly as diligent as I should be.</p>

<p>One thing that keeps me from using sunscreen more often is that I have to smooth it on with my fingers and then wash my fingers. I won’t use the spray-on stuff for my face, so I use the lotion. If there were little towelettes with sunscreen in them, I would probably use it more often. Of course, those might be pricy.</p>

<p>I have a friend who has porcelain skin on her face. She keeps it that way by seeing a dermatologist every time some tiny little spot appears – broken blood vessel, start of a brown spot, etc. I am jealous.</p>

6

<p>MaineLonghorn - thanks. Bear with me, I’m trying to go deeper on some of this. You put it on if you’re going to the beach … why? Is it because you anticipate being there more than X hours? Because there is no / little shade to escape to? Because you are wearing more “revealing” clothing than normal? Is it that certain parts of your body are exposed? If I told you you couldn’t wear sunscreen for some reason, what would you do in place of it? Would you not go to the beach? Go, but wear a t-shirt, a wide brimmed hat, etc.? What if it were a warm day, but overcast – would you still use sunscreen? </p>

<p>(Example as I thought about it for myself: I will put it on if I’m going biking, because my bike rides are 2+ hours long. But as I thought about it more, I realized if I wear a t-shirt, I won’t bother - but if I’m wearing a tank top / athletic top and my shoulders are exposed, I will. IOW, having my shoulders exposed in the sun is a trigger to sunscreen that having just my lower arms exposed isn’t. That’s the kind of thing I mean by going deeper. But I want insights other than my own experience!!) </p>

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<p>I have my Moroccan mother’s Mediterranean skin - I tan easily and quickly. I spend a fair amount of time outside. I DO like the look of a tan (not seeking the deepest tan, but I easily get fairly tan). The only other way I will seek a “tan” is using some self-tanner on my bare legs in the early spring or whenever I am donning skirts/dresses and the natural tan is not there. Have no interest in tanning booths, spray tan or otherwise. </p>

<p>I don’t do hats in the sun or out of the sun. </p>

<p>I spend a fair amount of time on the beach in the summer. During prime time (11-2pm) I am often out in a one piece suit and maybe a short athletic skirt. I do put a low grade sunscreen on (SPF 15 or lower) - often an oil as opposed to a cream. I reapply if I swim. I don’t think about putting sunscreen on at other times - not when running, not when gardening, etc. But much of that occurs during early morning or evening. If it’s not prime sunning time, I’m probably not putting on sunscreen.</p>

<p>I did just realize that I do use a daily Aveeno moisturizer that has SPF 15 on my face and legs. I don’t really think about the fact that it has sunscreen. I don’t but it for that reason. It just happens to have it. </p>

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<p>I’m in Florida, and sun care is a serious deal. My problem with sunscreen is that it is simply too expensive to use regularly. At $10/ bottle. and going through a bottle every 2 days…it gets expensive to use…especially with a family. …End up only using sunscreen at beach. I know I should wear a hat and long sleeves outside, and sunscreen too, but I don’t. Our local electric company, the lineman who work outside all day, they all wear hats and long sleeved shirts for sun protection.</p>

<p>…wear, not where a hat :)</p>

9

<p>I agree that the costs of anything besides the creams can be very expensive. If I’m a young mom with children and maybe single, it’s expensive to buy. </p>

<p>Recently bought a “can” of spray oil - it lasted one day at the beach between 3 or 4 of us. At close to $10, that’s ridiculous! </p>

10

<p>The sun is bad for my skin. It ages me. </p>

<p>I try to go out early and late to avoid the strongest sun. </p>

<p>I put cream on my face pretty religiously, other body parts if I know I will be out in the sunny times of the day. </p>

<p>I swim outside year round but almost always early in the morning. I don’t put on sunscreen before that swim, but do after—my sun screen for the day. That little bit of early morning sun does give me tan lines. </p>

<p>I am very fair and do think I look better with a little color, but I don’t seek it out. As a teenager I used to lay out in the sun and even experimented with tanner (eek!), but I don’t do that anymore. </p>

11

<p>I have fair skin, so have never been one to seek out the sun. I do wear moisturizer with sunscreen on my face/neck every single day, year round but am not so good with the rest of my skin. I will wear sunblock on my arms, chest and shoulders if I know that I will be out for a while, but not just for short walks (dog walking, for example). This is just out of laziness. In addition, I don’t like the smell of most sunblock/sunscreens.</p>

<p>I am bothered by my pale legs so I use moisturizer with self tanning product in the spring/summer.</p>

12

<p>My sister in law, who lives in Florida, wears those long sleeved surfing shirts while at the beach. So does her husband and children. They are not fair skinned to begin with, but it’s easier and better protection for being at the beach for hours. They use sunscreen for any exposed skin. </p>

13

<p>Here’s an interesting take on sunscreen. Apparently, there are newer and more effective ingredients out there but they haven’t been approved by the FDA yet. They are available in Europe and Canada and in one product made by L’Oreal. </p>

<p><a href=“http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/2014/03/20/be85a288-a9fc-11e3-9e82-8064fcd31b5b_story.html”>http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/2014/03/20/be85a288-a9fc-11e3-9e82-8064fcd31b5b_story.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>I actually read somewhere that the wipes were going to be discontinued in the U.S. after this summer, so they would not be available anymore. </p>

15

<p>I use sunscreen on my face daily-it’s part of my routine after I wash my face. Doesn’t matter what the weather/time of year iis and I live in the midwest. I’ve done this since I was in my 20’s and realized I didn’t want wrinkles! My mother and grandmother had beautiful skin and mostly just avoided the sun.
I love being outside and in the sun. I work out outside so I wear sunscreen and hats. It’s about vanity more than fear of skin cancer. I’m not as diligent about using it on the rest of my body.
As for using tanning products and services- well, I have used a spray tan a few times for a special occasion but it’s really not that important to me. </p>

16

<p>Since I’ve had one melanoma, and a couple of basal cell carcinomas I use sunscreen to save my life. I also wear hats. If I’m going to be on the water I wear a light sunscreen shirt, but otherwise I’d get too hot. I’m also considerably less enthusiastic about beach vacations these days. Hiking in the woods seems like a better idea. I freckle and burn with very little tan under it all. I’ve resigned myself to the way I look and just try to go for the pale red head look.</p>

<p>I look for sunscreens that don’t drip into my eyes and whose fumes don’t make my eyes water.</p>

17

<p>I live in the Pacific Northwest, where our doctors take it for granted that we’re deficient in vitamin D and we have the lowest skin cancer rates in the country. Most days it’s just not sunny enough to worry about. I have sensitive skin and many skin creams make my skin tingle painfully. The only sun block that doesn’t actually hurt is straight-up zinc oxide. I am white-haired, formerly red-haired, blue-eyed, very fair skin. I burned-then-peeled as a child most summers. </p>

<p>Most of the time I wear a hat to protect my face and leave it at that. My arms are tanned because I walk the dogs year round.</p>

<p>Imagine my surprise when I actually got sun burn on my nose during a long bike ride recently. I’d simply forgotten it was possible. Now there’s a thin layer of zinc oxide on my nose if I’m going to be in the sun for more than a half hour between 11 and 2–at least until we get past August. </p>

<p>I’ve had cancer–bone cancer (cured)–but there’s no history of skin cancers in my family. My sister, now age 80, still goes to the beach (in NJ) almost every day in the summer–and she’s had no skin cancers either. </p>

<p>Personally, I feel I’m at much greater risk from low vitamin D levels then I am from skin cancers. </p>

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<p>I apply sunscreen religiously, especially on my face. Last year, I spent a lot of money to have a few brown spots on the side of my face removed (they were almost all on the side of my face that gets hit by the sun when you are driving–the doctor told me that was very common to have more brown spots there.) In the summer I spent lots of time on the water and I also apply sunscreen and even carry it with me. </p>

<p>I hate greasy sunscreens and look for ones that are odorless. For special occasions I’ll do a full body spray tan.</p>

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<p>For those who think sunscreen is too expensive, it’s a lot cheaper than treating a basal cell carcinoma or malignant melanoma or getting cosmetic treatments to take care of sun damaged skin. </p>

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<p>I don’t know where people are shopping that would make them think sunscreen is too expensive for anyone. You can get a huge bottle of drugstore sunscreen for under 10-dollars. I hate the stuff that stings or smells and am much more protective of my face. Most foundation also includes sunscreen these days.</p>