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Is Sun Protection Factor 15 high enough?
SPF 15 is frequently quoted as the factor that most of us should stick to, but is it actually high enough?
While in the lab, SPF 15 is definitely high enough, in real life, it may not be so. Here's why: in order to get the SPF rating, each sunscreen is tested under a variety of conditions. But the amount of sunscreen applied is always the same and it tends to be much more than most of us actually use.
According to the preferred testing amounts, you should be using a 120ml bottle of sunscreen during a single eight-hour day at the beach. Most of us don't use nearly that much. So instead of applying enough to actually reach an SPF 15 rating, we use less and diminish the SPF value. What's more, when you perspire or wipe your skin with a towel, you lessen some of the sunscreen's effectiveness.
For this reason, many dermatologists advocate using sunscreen with a higher SPF (30 or above), especially if you are at high risk of skin cancer. Even if you use an SPF 30 sunscreen, it might only carry an SPF of 15, depending on how much is applied.
Why not chat to other iVillagers about sunscreen on the Skin Care message board. Take a look at some of the LIVE discussions happening now on the board:
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