What are the Best Sunscreens for My Face?
Perich Aesthetics, Tampa Bay FL
〰️
Perich Aesthetics, Tampa Bay FL 〰️
Sunscreen and living in Florida go hand in hand. There’s a good chance you are already using sunscreen on your face regularly but are you using it daily? Are you using a sunscreen that not only protects your skin from the sun but is healthy for you? Unfortunately not all sunscreen is as good as others. Using a high quality sunscreen on your face every day is a must in Florida, especially if you want to keep your youthful look!
What are the best sunscreens for my face?
To answer this, we first want to go over what ingredients you should be looking for in a sunscreen and why. It’s really all about the ingredients both their quality and which specific sun blocking ones are used. Some ingredients reflect the sun back off your skin almost like a mirror would, while others get absorbed into your skin to create a protective layer on the skin.
Mineral sunscreen is absolutely the way to go, but exactly which minerals are we talking about? When reading the labels of potential products to purchase and use, be on the lookout for titanium and zinc as the base. The natural ingredients titanium and zinc, help to form a protective barrier on the skin that reflects the harmful sun rays.
Think of this like applying a mirror coating to your face that bounces the UV rays right back off. One of the most important things is that the ingredients be a physical blocker rather than a chemical that absorbs into your skin and then are found to have measurable levels in your blood.
The chemical ingredients actually get absorbed into your skin, and thus into your bloodstream. They work by absorbing and converting the sun rays once the chemicals have been absorbed into your skin. This means it takes about 20 minutes to actually start to be effective. This is why you were always told to put the sunscreen on before you head out into the sun! You are at high risk those first few minutes sitting in the hot sun waiting for the sunscreen to dry.
It also means that those chemicals are now in your body and can be measured in your blood. With continued use, this can lead to harmful side effects.
What’s crazy to think about, is that the chemicals that are being put into many sunscreens other than titanium and zinc, are actually causing our coral reefs to die! These same chemicals are absorbed into your skin and are then measurable in your blood. What do you think the long term effect is when you use them on your own skin?!
Truth is we don’t actually know, but if something is killing the coral reef, I probably don’t want it on my body and measurable in my blood!
So, what is the best facial sunscreen to use?
At Perich Aesthetics, we are big fans of two skin care lines that both have a fabulous face sunscreen option: Skinbetter Science and Alastin Skincare. Both lines are scientifically advanced to give you the best on the market skin care available today. Alastin offers a tinted or non-tinted option both with broad spectrum SPF of 30+. Skinbetter Science has options addressing the needs of women and men specifically. We would be happy to go over all the options with you to find your best fit.
Let’s take a look at a few standouts-
HydraTint Pro Mineral Broad Spectrum Sunscreen SPF 36
Ok, yes, we love an amazing all-in-one product that knocks out the need to have multiple products every day. This bad boy hydrates while protecting with sunscreen and is tinted to give you an even glow.
This sunscreen is all mineral meaning it is the best way to protect your skin without harmful chemicals being absorbed. This product is:
Fragrance Free, Reef Friendly, & Water Resistant
Leaves No White Residue
Evens & Brightens with Glowing Tint
Provides Long Lasting Hydration
sunbetter TONE SMART SPF 75 Sunscreen Lotion 50 ml
Our highest level of sun protection in a tone-adapting, creamy lotion that provides a hint of color.
Why You'll Love It: Oil free, broad spectrum sunscreen acts as a primer under makeup or in place of a light coverage foundation. Helps prevent sunburn if used as directed with other sun protection measures to decrease the risk of skin cancer and early skin aging caused by the sun.
All skinbetter science products are dermatologist tested, paraben free, fragrance free, dye free, and cruelty free.
Looking for a sheer option? Check out the sunbetter SHEER SPF 70 Sunscreen Lotion.
Additionally, we always think that incorporating what you will actually use is a great choice! There are many great products out there that do combo duty, like makeup with natural ingredient SPF, tinted moisturizers, and regular moisturizers. The key is to use something every morning after you wash that is based with titanium or zinc, rather than some other chemical. If you get in the habit of moisturizing, protecting, and hydrating, you are well on your way to happy, healthy skin for years to come!
Lotion or Aerosol Sunscreen?
What we now know, is that aerosol sunscreen can have very harmful chemicals in them. It has recently been found that a known carcinogenic called benzene is being found in a number of the aerosol sunscreens from top trusted brands. Therefore, lotion sunscreen is your absolute best bet right now. This has only been found in the aerosol cans and not the lotions. To be on the safe side, we would recommend you only use lotion sunscreens, and only ones who’s active ingredients are either titanium or zinc.
The research is still on going for the aerosols, and not every brand may be effected, however it is better to be safe than sorry in this case. As the research comes in, we will be following along and make sure to do updates as needed.
