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Jul 6, 2007 11:58 pm US/Mountain
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New Ingredients Offer Better Protection From Sun
Good Question: How do you get the most protection out of your sunscreen?
by Alan Gionet
AURORA, Colo. (CBS4) ―
"I just know they need 50 block," said a woman putting sunscreen on her little girl. "I definitely use the SPF 50 when I'm outside all day at work," said a young woman who also admits to sometimes using a suntan oil with no protection when she seeks a tan. "I'm not a burner," she said. But it's not just the burning that causes damage.
Experts are learning a lot about the ultraviolet rays that aren't the main culprit when it comes to sunburns, but cause damage and potentially cancer. Some experts say the government has been slow to catch up with appropriate labeling.
Many people trust the required SPF to tell them how much protection you'll find in the bottle or spray can. "But SPF is only an indicator or a test for UVB," said Swedish Medical Center Dermatologist Dr. Judy Chiang. "It says nothing about UVA." "UVA is actually a longer wavelength than UVB so it penetrates into the dermis more and that's where all the photo aging occurs." That means wrinkles, age spots and cancer.
Experts feel both UVA and UVB rays cause skin cancers. But UVA is much harder to to stop. Up to 95 percent of the UV rays that reach the skin are UVA rays. They are present from sunrise to sunset and will penetrate clouds and automobile windshields. As much as 80 percent of aging may be attributable to UVA.
So while your sunscreen lists a sun protection factor of 50, it may not offer UVA protection. Physical sunscreens work because they physically block the rays. Many contain zinc oxide and titanium oxide that often tint the sunscreen white.
Many of the sunscreens for children will contain these ingredients and Dr. Chiang said they may be better choices for children because the chemical sunscreens work differently.
That's because the avobenzone used in many of the chemical sunscreens need to have a stabilizer. Otherwise its protection degrades rapidly after application.
The UVA protecting chemical sunscreens of just a few years ago had this problem said Dr. Chiang. Over the past year, many manufacturers have received approval for new stabilizing agents that make the sunscreens more effective against UVA. A newer bottle will serve you much better.
What about that sunscreen that's been in your cabinet for several years? The doctor recommends throwing it out if it doesn't have the newer stabilizing agents to help the avobenzone do its work.
Other points from Dr. Chiang:
• Rub in that spray-on sunscreen. The protection will be less effective if you don't.
• She doesn't favor the waterproof sunscreens because people believe they'll last all day. They won't.
• And while we're talking about it - re-apply that sunscreen frequently.
(© MMVII CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)