SUNSCREEN 101: A THREAD

this is the absolute beginner’s guide to sunscreen! maybe you’re a religious sunscreen wearer, maybe you’ve never worn it in your life, but I’m compiling all of the basics and some education into a thread! (This is probably going to be long)

1. WHAT IS SUNSCREEN?

Here is the Wikipedia blurb for sunscreen. Another important aspect of sunscreen is that it is a DRUG regulated by the FDA. In order to be an actual “sunscreen”, the product must have approved FDA approved UV filters in it.

2. WHAT IS A “UV FILTER”?

UV filters are compounds, mixtures, or materials that block or absorb ultraviolet (UV) light. In sunscreens, these are the active ingredients which provide the actual protection against the UV rays for your skin.

Sunscreens can have either physical or chemical UV filters, or a mix of both! Here are the specific names of common active ingredients of each type:

Physical/mineral filters: zinc oxide, titanium dioxide

Chemical filters: oxybenzone, octinoxate, homosalate, avobenzene

3. WHICH ONE IS BETTER? PHYSICAL OR CHEMICAL?

That depends on your preference! Some people are sensitive/allergic to certain chemical filters, so they wear mineral sunscreen instead. However, mineral sunscreen tends to leave a white/gray cast, which many people tend to avoid.

4. IS IT TRUE THAT CHEMICAL SUNSCREENS ARE TOXIC?

This is not true. At all. This is fearmongering and anti-science rhetoric spread by “natural” essential oil pyramid scheme type people. As stated before, all UV filters are EXTENSIVELY studied and tested by the FDA to be safe.

5. SHOULD *I* USE SUNSCREEN?

Yes. You should use sunscreen. End of discussion.

6. WHEN SHOULD I USE SUNSCREEN?

You should use sunscreen every day during the day time. Even when it’s winter, cloudy, etc. Just because you can’t see the sun doesn’t mean it’s gone!

Unless you spend your whole day in a dark room or you’re nocturnal, you should always wear it.

7. HOW MUCH SUNSCREEN SHOULD I USE?

So, here’s a little math part. It is widely accepted by the FDA that the amount of sunscreen needed to get the SPF rating labeled on the bottle is 2 mg/cm^2

Of course, no one is gonna be measuring the exact surface area of their face and calculating/measuring out how much sunscreen they’ll wear every time. So the general rule of thumb (popularized by @MakeupForWOC) is to wear TWO FINGERS length of sunscreen to cover the face and neck

What does that mean? It means that you squeeze out sunscreen along the length of your index and middle finger, and this should be about the right amount to get the advertised SPF rating on the bottle. If you apply less, you are getting LESS sun protection than is advertised.

8. HOW OFTEN SHOULD I REAPPLY SUNSCREEN?

Generally you should reapply every two hours. We move around, sweat, rub, and wipe at our faces throughout the day which removes the sunscreen we put on. Reapplying about every two hours should ensure constant protection.

9. DOES THE SPF NUMBER MATTER?

Yes! Estheticians and dermatologists recommend at least SPF 30 sunscreen! However, anything *above* SPF 50 has been shown to only provide veeeeery small amounts more protection than just plain SPF 50. So 30~50 is the sweet spot!

10. DOES SHEA BUTTER/ESSENTIAL OILS COUNT AS SUNSCREEN? CAN I MAKE MY OWN SUNSCREEN?

Aaaaah the dreaded question. As mentioned before, the essential oil pyramid scheme ladies will have you believe sunscreen is poisoning your blood (which is again, not true AT ALL)

So their “solution” is any number of “natural”/diy sunscreens, which include Shea butter, grape seed oil, any essential oils you can think of, and a concoction of all of the above. But why can’t you use these as sunscreen?

Any of these “natural” ingredients carry about an SPF 4 at maximum. But if you put seven of them together into one cream, that’s SPF 31, right?

wrong :( SPF is not the sum of its ingredients, it’s the highest number only. So that “natural” sunscreen would still be SPF 4.

11. MY MAKEUP HAS SPF. IS THAT ENOUGH?

This answer has to do with the “how much should I wear?” question. As stated before, you need about 2 mg/cm^2 of sunscreen to get the SPF rating on the label. Most people don’t wear that much foundation because it would be REALLY cakey

Also, most foundations tend to only have about SPF 15, which really isn’t going to last very long or give much protection.

Instead, apply two fingers amount of sunscreen after moisturizer. Then, wait about 10 minutes for the sunscreen to set before applying makeup

12. DO POC REALLY NEED TO WEAR SUNSCREEN?

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Brown and Black people constantly are told by their parents and grandparents that they never wore sunscreen and were totally fine. Misconceptions that aging and burning aren’t real concerns for darker skinned people.

My grandpa always said that our family didn’t burn, we tanned. My grandpa also had a (thankfully benign) melanoma from spending his days in the hot Maui and LA sun with no sunscreen. He also didn’t age the best, wrinkle-wise.

Regardless of melanin levels, sunscreen is a MUST

An addition, people of color (regardless of how dark skinned you are) have a much higher chance of getting hyperpigmentation. Because our melanin production is much higher, we can have more post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (dark spots left after acne and other inflammation)

Even if you work on trying to get rid of that hyperpigmentation with exfoliation such as AHA (glycolic acid, lactic acid, mandelic acid, etc), those ingredients make the skin even more photosensitive, and work AGAINST the skin tone evening process.

So instead wondering why all of these acids and peels aren’t working while you’re not wearing sunscreen, make sure to be RELIGIOUS with sunscreen and really protect your skincare investment. You will notice results much faster!

and that concludes
SUNSCREEN 101: A THREAD

thank you so much for reading if you got to the end! If you enjoyed or learned anything, drop a like or rt! Also if you have any other questions about sunscreen, feel free to ask! I can talk about sunscreen for ages

ALSO, I have a ko-fi! If you enjoyed this thread, consider leaving me a tip I am a licensed esthetician, who has been out of work for about 6 months because of the pandemic. Any little kofi is appreciated https://ko-fi.com/thatskincarefriend