5 Decisive reasons to protect your skin from UV radiation

We all know very well that the sun is harmful to the skin. Yet you can’t get enough of it. Enjoying the sun by the water, on a terrace or simply in the garden. A good argument could be that the vitamin D you get in the sun is also very important. But at the end of the day you look in the mirror and you are sunburned. That is of course not the intention but at least you have a nice tan afterwards. For many, this is probably a recognizable situation.

In this blog, we as skin specialists and cosmetic doctors at Ivy clinics still want to make you a little more aware of what sun damage really does to your skin and how to prevent it.

Vitamin D you definitely need but is quickly replenished. For this you do not need to lie in the sun all day. Greasing with coconut oil or olive oil is strictly discouraged and there are probably very few people who still go out in the sun like this to get an extra fast tan. Nowadays, we are becoming more consciously educated with the message that sunscreen is really very important. Greasing well and avoiding the sun for specific hours of the day is really necessary to prevent visible skin damage and skin cancer, even in the Netherlands. Also grease yourself and any children several times in a day because sunscreen does not work all day.

More and more is also known about HEV radiation or blue light. This comes from artificial light such as monitors etc. Research has shown that this is a major culprit in the development of skin damage. As much as 5.1% is caused by UVA and UVB radiation and 39% of skin damage is caused by HEV radiation. Therefore, do not only provide a UVA and UVB filter in your sunscreen, but also a filter against HEV light. Not only HEV radiation but also infrared radiation occurs in the outdoors. Recent clinical research has shown that infrared radiation is just as harmful to the skin as UV radiation and thus also has a major impact on skin aging.

Protection every day, even when it’s cloudy

Nowadays we know quite well that we should not seek the sun too much and that sunscreen is not an unnecessary luxury. But do you know what exactly are the consequences of UV radiation? Why it is important to protect your skin with a factor every day, even when it is cloudy or foggy? And that this applies even when you are behind glass, for example in the car? Because UV-A radiation (the A is for Aging) goes even through glass. UV-B stands for Burning (burning), which we face in the outdoors.

Skin aging you only regret later

In our clinic, we see the effects of years of UV radiation on the skin on a daily basis. Fortunately, in most cases we can treat the consequences well, but prevention is always better than cure. In practice, that seems to take some effort, putting on sunscreen, sunglasses, seeking shade….

But if you’re reading this, you might be one of the people looking for a really good reason to make this effort. Then be sure to read on. We’d like to give you five decisive reasons to protect your skin from the sun every day, along with advice on how to do so:

• Being unprotected in the sun causes the skin to burn, or sunburn. Burns can permanently damage your skin cells, in some cases resulting in skin cancer. In 4 out of 5 cases, this could have been prevented by protection from UV radiation.

Do you have children? Then avoid burning them…they will thank you later.

• UV rays cause your skin to lose its moisture. And this in turn causes the faster appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. By protecting your skin, you can enjoy younger-looking skin for longer.
• Too much UV radiation causes overactive pigment cells. This causes skin discoloration, such as freckles, hyperpigmentation orwhite spots (hypopigmentation).
• The texture of your skin changes and slackens because of the sun. When you touch your skin, it will feel different, less firm also. The outer layer thickens and causes congestion and drab skin faster, while the inner layer loses elasticity. The lighter your skin type, the more sensitive you are to this.
• The positive effects of the sun (vitamin D production) soon appear. Vitamin D is good for our health, for which we need outdoor air and UV radiation on our skin. For the production of vitamin D, 15 minutes a day outside is enough. So there is no reason not to protect your skin!

Still not convinced? Then check out pictures on the Internet of damage that too much sun exposure can cause you. For example, there are also fun studies with twins where 1’s skin is well protected and the other is not. Or truck drivers who have much greater damage on one side (the window side) than on the other side of the face. Also read through our tips for protecting yourself from UV radiation.

Treatment effects sun damage

Is your skin already dealing with the effects of too much sun? Then at least start with proper protection to prevent worse, if you don’t already. In addition, there are several treatment options to improve pigmentation and skin texture, for example. Think of treatment with chemical peels (such as Easy TCA), Youlaser CO2 laser, eMatrix laser, Magma laser (Renaisance treatment), Skinboosters PRX-T33, PlexR, ME-line, microneedling, injectables and skinboosters that we inject , and in addition of course skincare routine products. Are you interested in any of these treatments or products and would like appropriate advice for your skin. Then schedule a no-obligation intake or video consultation with one of our Ivy specialists.

Product recommendations

Grease your skin every 4 hours or reapply your mineral makeup powder that contains sun protection every 4 hours. An overview of Ivy’s favorite products:

Synergy skin Uberzinc face and Synergy skin Uberzinc body

This is a moisturizer with 21% zinc oxide. This moisturizes your skin and protects against premature skin aging. Because of the high percentage of zinc oxide, you are very broadly protected from UVA and UVB radiation, and in addition, this cream soothes your skin. Uberzinc is also a very safe product to protect your children from outside influences throughout the day. Ideal when they are at school and you are not there to grease them. 100% natural and without chemical filters.

Synergy skin Environschield

Enviroshield is an invisible “shield” against urban air pollution. It is an anti-pollution spray designed to protect against the harmful effects of air pollution, HEV and infrared rays. Enviroshield spray has multiple benefits, including:

• Preventing the skin from absorbing heavy metals and hydrocarbons
• Preventing free radical damage
• Protecting against premature skin aging
• Deeply moisturizing the skin
• It fixes mineral makeup with a misty finish

Synergy skin mineral makeup

Aside from the importance of mineral makeup not blocking your pores, it also provides extra sun protection. The zinc oxide in mineral makeup is a natural sun protection. So an SPF without a chemical filter. In addition, the mineral particles you apply to your face reflect the sun’s rays.

EmerginC vitamin C 12% or 20%

Vitamin C is an antioxidant that fights free radicals such as UV radiation. A must-have for preventing pigmentation and other sun damage.

EmerginC tinted spf 30

This is a natural sunscreen with mineral filters. An SPF30+ protection against UVA and UVB. With a very nice tint as a replacement or preparation for your foundation.

EmerginC glowguard

This is a moisturizer with high concentrations of elderberry extract, edelweiss extract and SOLIBERINE®, a phyto-bioactive antioxidant from the Butterfly bush. This moisturizer protects against the harmful effects of blue light. Ideal for people who spend a lot of time behind computer screens and prefer not to suffer skin damage from it.