Sun Protection for Sensitive Skin

If you have fair or dry skin, you probably tend to be more sensitive to the sun.  Dry skin loses lipids and moisture due to decreased activity of sebaceous glands.  The sun makes this even worse.  If you have sensitive dry skin or suffer from a skin condition, such as eczema or psoriasis, make sure to use products designed for your skin condition. 

Using a sun protection product may also make acne worse by clogging pores.  The blue light from solar radiation may improve the acne condition, but that does not mean you shouldn’t wear sunscreen.  Choose a non-comedogenic (won’t clog pores) product formulated for acne prone skin. 

Children (because they are not yet fully developed) are more sensitive to the sun than adults.  The horny layer does not have the capacity to thicken and its barrier function is weakly developed.  Sebaceous gland production remains very low until puberty, making the hydrolipid film less developed.  Children also play outside which exposes them to three times more radiation than adults.  Up to 50-80% of our sun exposure occurs before we reach 18. 

Use an SPF of at least 15 on your children.  Make sure than it contains sufficient UVA protection.  A large proportion of the protection should consist of micro-pigments (for example, titanium dioxide). These do not penetrate the skin (so they will not cause photo or contact allergies). 

You should use a water-proof sunscreen because UV radiation penetrates through water.  For children, we recommend the Eucerin® Sun Sensitive Skin range for children.  It’s extra water-proof – not only does it test positively for water resistance for 20 minutes, but also at 6 hours to ensure it protects the skin underwater 9 times longer than the minimum standard requires.  This does not mean that you do not have to reapply - toweling off can remove up to 80% of the sunscreen.