Sunscreen: Do you re-apply?

[Miss Lauren]

My sunscreen recommends re-applying every 2-3 hours or after sport, sweating, swimming etc but it also depends on homw much sunscreen you use in the first place as to how often you reapply.

As your meant to use the 'two finger' rule (middle finger and fourth finger worth of sunscreen on all 10 areas of the body), that should effectively last for the 2-3 hours before needing reapplication but if you were to use only a tiny amount then you would definitely need to reapply more often to get good protection

 

[Sleeptime]

I don't, but I guess since I work indoors, I don't get exposed to the sun at all. So I guess once should be enough?

 

[mowgli]

theres a sunscreen here in the UK called Soltan Once (its by Boots). Once applied, its good for 8 hours..

 

[LittleJade]

I only reapply on my arms if necessary. On face I usually wear a broad spectrum mineral sunscreen and so far haven't needed to reapply. I already have a light tan and don't get darker very easily either.

 

[La_Mari]

I'm bad, I don't wear it ever. It usually stings my face a lot and that's still the palest part of my body. If for some reason I don't wear makeup, like laying on my trampoline, I reapply, but I'm too busy for this sunscreen thing. It's not worth it to me, having to do it 4/+ times a day, everyday, for ever... not my thing. I am only in direct sunlight (or close to it) when I'm in my car or getting out of it. And when I sit here next to the window.

 

[Shelley]

I rarely wear it under makeup because my moisturizer contains sunscreen. If I am going to the beach or working in the garden, in which case I don't wear makeup, I apply it about 20 min before going out and reapply it every 2-3 hours. I like sunscreens in a spray formula, seems faster to apply. I tan very easily, rarely burn, use a SPF 30.

 

[Ashley]

I'll only reapply if I don't have makeup on.

 

[bCreative]

I usually don't think about it.

 

[beautynista]

Thanks for the replies everyone!

 

[ivette]

me too

 

[fillmore]

I use cream type sunscreen for make up base in a morning, and if I'm out for lo~ng time, I use splay type 3-4hours later. It seems ok. better than re apply cream base on top of make up.

 

[chocobon]

I never reapply cuz I don't wanna mess up my makeup but I wear 2-3 coats of sunscreen before applying makeup!!

 

[jessica9]

a couple distinctions need to be made.

first - a sunscreen is made of chemicals that absorbs the sun's rays, and is degraded by the sun's rays. thus, you need to reapply every two hours. if you are not exposed to he sun (indoors not by windows or without windows) the protection will last. you have two hours in sunlight before your sunscreen no longer works. so it isn't just that sunscreen stops working after two hours - it is because of its interaction with the sun.

second - a sunblock is a non-chemical form of sunprotection that is usually made up of zinc oxide, titanium oxide, both, or combined other mineral blockers. these reflect the uv rays off from the skin and do not degrade. you can wear a physical blocker all day long and if you do not sweat excessively or have extremely oily skin, you are protecting yous skin all day and do not need to reapply. they leave a whitish cast when properly applied though, so most people don't like them. the mirconized versions are less effective but still are blocks.

third - most chemical sunscreens have a form of avobenzone in it. you can google avobenzone and find out its other names. avobenzone breaks down when combined with a physical blocker. a lot of sunscreens contain physical blockers but they are chemically coated so that they do not interact with the chemical ingredients. the importantce of this involves makeup. if you are applying foundation, you are putting Titanium Dioxide on your face and there goes your protection! It will at least significantly weaken it. If you wear a sunscreen and want sun protection, you really can't wear foundation. It is a compromise. You can wear a light dusting of powder, but pretty much all makeup contains Ti2O.

So...my point is that a lot of you wearing makeup with sunscreen underneith are not getting adequate protection. you may not be burning, but if you aren't outside much, you may not burn. You can be out in the sun with just a chemical sunscreen for a long time and the SPF is protecting you from burning because it most likely has a physical blocker in it. But as far as UVA protection - those are the rays that damage your skin and you aren't just safe cos you didn't burn - you are getting skin damage.

moisturizers with sunscreen and foundations with sunscreen are not really adequate either. you have to apply a mask of foundation in order to get the protection. and moisturizer foundations is sort of like icing on a cake. a spray sunscreen is a good idea, but you have to make sure the ingredients are compatible. it is all about ingredients and their interactions. the cosmetics and skincare companies do not care much about educating people about this stuff because they know people want products that are cosmetically appealing. chemical sunscreens are, but they don't last very long.

so i reapply if i have been out in the sun more two hours because i know my sunscreen is worthless then. and i'm a sunscreen fanatic. just thought i'd mention these things - even if some of you know them already cos others don't seem to know. it sucks that a lot of people out there think they are taking good care of their skin and really their efforts are for nothing. if makeup is a necessity for you, i would recommend a zinc oxide formulation sunblock. you dont have to reapply and you can wear makeup. you can even used a microlized formulation as a compromise. it looks nice on the skin as a base. just make sure when you apply to apply evenly and apply your makeup carefully. with a sunblock and a makeup with sunblock...you are doing everything right. some of you are probably doing that. people use the words sunscreen and sunblock interchangebly and they mean very different things.

 

[beautynista]

That was VERY interesting!! Thanks!!

Well, I have a question. I use both chemical and physical sunblocks depending on the day and then on top I use my mineral foundation which contains a sunscreen. Is the foundation weakening the sunblock? does it only weaken chemical sunblocks and not physical?

 

[jessica9]

beautynista...

it is fine to switch from one to the other depending on day to day - chemical to physical - but your mineral foundation is can say with pretty much 100% certainty interacting with the chemical sunscreen when use it. avobenzone is the chemical that they use as a good uva filter for sunscreens and it interacts with the natural sunscreen in your mineral foundation. some of the minerals themselves are sunscreens, so that is how they can say mineral foundation has a natural sun protection, which is good - you just have to use a physical blocker underneith if you are going to use mineral foundation.

what sort of physical blocker do you use? there are a lot of companies out now making physical blockers out of micronized zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. they don't need to be reapplied because they do not degrade in the sun. as long as you aren't sweating profusely, you are fine with it. and it is cosmetically appealing - goes on more like a chemical sunscreen. if you wear your makeup over that, you are getting even more protection technically. how much...probably not a lot, but it definately isn't a bad thing, right? there are a lot of good things about physical blockers. the reason people don't use them as much is because of the "white cast" they tend to leave. skinceuticals makes good micronized zinc formulations. you want to look for the word "z-cote" - that is what they call micronized zinc. the thing about mineral makeup and chemical sunscreen interaction goes for all makeup, because titanium dioxide is literally used in almost every single makeup product. it is a natural sunscreen. you will see a lot of companies touting physical blockers as "natural" because...well, they are found in nature.

while i'm at it, i'll just say that chemical sunscreens are good too. there is controversy about them, but there is about everything. you will probably notice titanium dioxide in your chemical sunscreen, but it is probably chemically coated to not interfere with avobenzone. avobenzone has many names, so you might not see it on there, but if you google the ingredients, i'm sure one of them would come up as avobenzone. i use a european sunscreen with meroxyl and it has a form of avobenzone in it too. it has a ppd (uva rating) of 31, which is extremely high. You can't achieve PPD higher than 10-15 with physical only sunscreens. On the other hand PPD of 10 blocks 1-1/10= 90% of UVA & PPD of 30 blocks 1-1/30 = 97%. So you really are only getting 7% less UVA protection with a physical block, plus you don't have to reapply and risk not getting ANY protection at all! Chemical sunscreens have the higher PPD because they combine a sunblocks and different chemical sunscreens to achieve really good protection. But you can see, the difference isn't too big a deal. It is the cosmetic appeal of chemical sunscreens that make them more desirable. So I would try z-cote if you aren't using it already.

if wearing makeup is important to you and sun-protection is something you are putting effort into, seems to me like you might as well stick with a physical blocker. you can't go wrong that route and you can look all pretty! :luv: there are cheaper brands than skinceuticals, but that is the one i use and i like it. i use both as well. oh...and make sure you apply enough. i think you need to apply an 1/8 teaspoon to the face. that doesn't seem like a lot, but it is! that is why micronized formulations are so much more appealing. otherwise you would look like a kabuki mask or a ghost.

 

[beautynista]

Thanks so much for your response! You really know your info! /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

The physical sunblock I use is Clinique City Block which I believe is titanium dioxide based. The chemical sunscreens I use are European, they contain Tinosorb (which I believe, like Mexoryl...is more photostable than Avobenzone?).

 

[jessica9]

haha...well thanks! it comes from an unhealthy obsession to be healthy! i think the clinique city block is a fine choice. i don't know much about it, but it seems like a good daily option. that with your mineral makeup and you are in really good shape and well-protected! a lot of the physical blockers don't give info on PPD, but you can always contact the companies and ask what the PPD is. Tinosorb and Meroxyl are more photosstable than avobenzone, but avobenzone is a good UVA filter, so they use it in a ton of things. helioplex is good too - which is the neutrogena/american version of meroxyl. some dermatologists consider it just as good as meroxyl. eh...you can never be sure. but yeah....i would stick with the city block or try a sunscreen with z-cote and then wear your mineral makeup. check makeupalley.com for reviews of sunscreens - there are a lot and it can be helpful.

 

[brewgrl]

the whole mess up your make up thing- this is why everyone should use the neutrogena fresh cooling spray!!! i never forget to re-apply with this. and it makes you tingle a little.

 

[beautynista]

Well I just read up on all the reviews and I'm disappointed to know that titanium dioxide alone, especially micronized, is not an effective UVA blocking agent. Zinc Oxide is a more effective physical blocker. Damn! hehe. My City Block!

I need time to digest all that info, phew!

There's a fresh cooling spray for the face? I know they have one for the body.

 

[magosienne]

mm, if i read this well, apparently my now well established habit of either putting sunscreen on my face or mineral makeup but never both is good. my HG is anthelios from La Roche Posay (interesting fact : they do write their PPD on their website). it contains Avobenzone (written as Butyl smthg, the spelling gives you a headache lol) and titanium dioxide, i guess it's a good combo, right?

i'll trust my mineral foundation for those days i can't afford going outside with acne scars:rotfl:.