UV Exposure Adds Up! Make protecting your skin a habit, every day, all year long. Photo: SLAVICA/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS
Q: Why do I feel like I only see stories about sun protection in the summer?
Media coverage of skin cancer and the need for sun protection proliferates in May for a couple of related reasons. In most of the country, the weather starts to warm up in the spring, and people tend to go outdoors more and cover up less. By summer, they’re wearing shorts, T-shirts, tank tops and other clothing that leaves more of their skin exposed to dangerous ultraviolet (UV) rays than at other times of the year.
Meanwhile — most likely because it represents the launch of “sun season” — May has been designated Skin Cancer Awareness Month. This kind of branding works well in prompting magazines, newspapers, websites, podcasts and other media to give the topic plenty of coverage (think breast cancer in October), and it’s fantastic consciousness-raising.
But it’s essential to understand that sun damage is cumulative. The damage from UV radiation that you’re exposed to on an everyday basis accumulates over time, 12 months a year. That’s why in the health and beauty departments of the publications I work for, we constantly stress the importance of using broad-spectrum, SPF 30 or higher sunscreen every single day, cloudy or sunny. You need to make sun protection part of your routine year round, not just when the summer sun is blazing and you’re relaxing by the pool. It adds up, whether it’s through the car window when you’re driving or while you’re walking in the park.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of myths and other obstacles that may prevent some people from using sunscreen as effectively as they could. They may have read articles alleging that so-called “chemical” active ingredients (technically known as organic filters) are harmful.
Sunscreens sold in the U.S. are regulated as drugs by the FDA and must undergo rigorous testing. In the U.S, the FDA has requested additional data on 12 organic sunscreen active ingredients to make a generally recognized as safe and effective (GRASE) status determination. The FDA notes that this data request does not mean that these sunscreen ingredients are unsafe — and does recommend using sunscreen daily, including products that may contain these ingredients. Also, the organic sunscreen active ingredient bemotrizinol (BEMT), or PARSOL Shield, an active ingredient long used with good safety data in many countries, was FDA-approved in 2026. It is the first new active ingredient in the U.S. in more than 25 years.
That said, if there are any ingredients you prefer to avoid, you can certainly choose a product without them. Those with sensitive skin, for example, may want to choose a sunscreen with only inorganic UV filters like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. There are so many sunscreens on the market today — the most important thing is to choose a product you’re comfortable using daily and that is labeled broad spectrum with an SPF of at least 30 for daily use and minimum SPF 50 for extended outdoor activity.
Another issue with sunscreen use is that people almost never apply the recommended amount, which is approximately a nickel-size dollop for the face and a shot-glass-full for the face and body together. In a study, our Beauty Lab at the Good Housekeeping Institute measured how much sunscreen a group of women applied when they were given unlimited access to dispensers full of sunscreen, and on average, the amount was just 33 percent of what was recommended.
That study is one reason we tell readers that, in general, the higher the SPF, the better. If you’re using an SPF 30 and putting on a third of what you should, you’re only getting the equivalent of an SPF 10. Steven Q. Wang, MD, chair of The Skin Cancer Foundation’s Photobiology Committee, says that an SPF 30 allows about 3 percent of UVB rays (mainly responsible for sunburn) to hit your skin. An SPF of 50 allows about 2 percent of those rays through. That may seem like a small difference until you realize that the SPF 30 is allowing 50 percent more UVB radiation onto your skin!
One other reason not to think skin protection is seasonal: More researchers are saying we should think beyond UV light, since we spend hours a day sitting in front of devices with screens that emit the kind of blue light also found in the visible part of the sun’s spectrum. Some tinted cosmetic formulas may help protect against blue light, and glasses that block blue light are popular and may help protect your eyes. Adding an antioxidant serum containing vitamin C or choosing a sunscreen that incorporates antioxidants may help protect against free radicals from exposure to visible light and keep your skin looking great! — Interview by Lorraine Glennon
About the Expert
April Franzino is the beauty director at Good Housekeeping, Woman’s Day and Prevention.
