Serious Protection: Zinc Oxide Sunscreen

These days it is common knowledge that we need to be protecting our skin from the sun. There are many detrimental effects of too much sun exposure, including skin cancer and the only way to prevent ourselves from suffering those effects is to use sunscreen when we spend time out in the sun.

There are many different types of sunscreen and sunblock available. The variety of brands, forms and ingredients varies so greatly it can be difficult to know which to buy. Let’s talk about ingredients for a minute.

Some active sunscreen ingredients absorb or block UVB and UVA rays. However, each individual ingredient provides a certain amount of protection. Most often ingredients need to be combined in order to provide maximum protection from both UVA and UVB rays.

Even with all the different ingredients, it is still uncommon for a sunscreen to filter out all of both kinds of rays. There is one ingredient, however, which is excellent at blocking each kind.

Zinc Oxide is the inorganic compound that provides the broadest UVA and UVB protection. Products that contain it are usually known as sunblock rather than sunscreen as they block the harmful rays, rather than just screening them.

Zinc oxide sunscreen, or sunblock, is different than other types. This is partly because the zinc oxide itself is not absorbed into the skin. Instead it sits on the surface of the skin, blocking the UVA and UVB rays from damaging your skin. Since it only rests on the skin it will not irritate your skin or cause allergic reactions.

Speaking of it sitting on the skin, have you seen people with a white streak on their nose out in the sun? That would be zinc oxide.

Another advantage to zinc oxide as a sunscreen is that it is completely photostable. Some sunscreen ingredients break down when exposed to the sun. This means that they are not very photostable and therefore need to be reapplied frequently. Zinc oxide on the other hand is completely photostable and is not damaged at all by lengthy exposure to the sun’s UVA and UVB rays.

Because so many other sunscreens cannot protect well from UVA rays, zinc oxide is one of the best choices if you want to really protect your skin. UVA rays don’t cause sunburn, so you may not see the damage they are doing. You may think your sunscreen is doing the job just fine, but the reality is that your skin is still being damaged by rays that can cause melanoma (skin cancer).

Before you purchase sun protection lotion, be sure you are looking at zinc dioxide sunscreen or sunblock, which will give you the best possible protection from the rays that cause visible damage as well as those that are more silently harmful.

 


 

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