You would be hard pressed to find someone in Australia who is not aware of the lethal dangers associated with the sun. We have the highest rate of skin cancer in the world. Almost one in two people who live in Australia their whole life develop some form of skin cancer, according to the NSW Cancer Council. The company also found that each year there are 1600 deaths from skin cancer in Australia.
If that’s not enough to send you running to pick up some SPF30+, statistics from The DermaClinic shows exposure to ultraviolet light, UVA or UVB from sunlight accounts for 90 per cent of the symptoms of premature skin aging. The very same thing we all want our beauty products to fix.
Despite these alarming statistics, many people are still not wearing sunscreen on a daily basis. Australian Usage and Attitudes Research conducted in March this year by marketing research firm Ipsos found that in October (in the lead up to summer) only 63 per cent of females throughout Australia were using sunscreen at all.
Many moisturisers and foundations now provide sunscreen benefits, however, according to the Cancer Council these are fine if you are only outside for a small amount of time but not adequate if you are going to be spending longer periods in the sun. The Council also warned that most cosmetic products offer protection much lower than the maximum recommended SPF30+.
You don’t need to be forking out the big dollars to get the ultimate sun protection, any SPF30+ broad-spectrum sunscreen purchased in Australia will give good protection, according to the Cancer Council.
Do you apply sunscreen daily (even when it’s winter)? Do you remember to reapply throughout the day?
