• Home
  • About
  • Beauty
  • Real Talk
  • Wellness
  • Podcast
  • YouTube

All Gussied Up

Beauty, Real Talk, Wellness · July 7, 2022

The sun, your skin, and sunscreen

Well, hi.

Just in time for summer, this post is all about the sun and your skin. This is a topic that I have researched extensively – it is a topic of one of my early days’ blog posts too – circa 2009.

Right now there are two camps when it comes to sun care and skincare: 1. those who will tell you to slather yourself in SPF at all times, even if you’re not going outside. 2. those who tell you that the more unprotected sun exposure, the better. AKA mainstream and not mainstream advice, respectively.

Here’s the moral of the story (tldr): how much unprotected sun exposure you should be exposed to on the daily totally depends on your skin type and geography (where you live).

I have naturally fair skin and I do burn easily, so I can speak to my personal experience. When I stopped wearing sunscreen everyday a few years ago, I noticed an improvement in my skin’s texture and overall brightness. I never intentionally overdo it in the sun, and know my limit with being outside.

If you’re just dipping your toe in the water with ditching the daily use of sunscreen if you’re not going to be outside for long periods of time, my biggest tip is to go outside first thing in the morning without sunscreen on for 5-15 minutes. Not only is it the best time to not burn, the sun also loads your body with beneficial vitamins and hormones. You can’t see it happening, but you can totally feel it. You know when you’re on vacation, and you go outside and just FEEL light and happy? It’s like getting a warm hug – sunlight releases serotonin (the happiness hormone) in your brain, boosts your bone health, and actually might help treat several skin conditions.

This is where I can also chime in from personal experience: since not wearing sunscreen during my daily short walks outside in the morning, my rosacea, keratosis pilaris, and scalp psoriasis have improved significantly. I didn’t know it was due in part to this lifestyle change of getting sun exposure daily, first thing in the morning, until I read the research. UV radiation exposure can treat things like psoriasis, acne, jaundice, and eczema.

Vitamin D is another health benefit given to us by the sun. Vitamin D plays a big role in bone health. Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium and phosphorus from food and assists bone development.

Ok, so how much time should you be spending in the sun? The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 5 to 15 minutes of sun exposure 2 to 3 times a week. Personally I do 5-10 minutes of sun exposure in the morning because my skin responds best to that amount of time given that I have fair skin.

Here’s what I do before going out in the sun in the morning:

♡ eat breakfast and drink an espresso

♡ slather on moisturizer (love Paula’s Choice Water-Infusing Electrolyte Moisturizer)

♡ take MitoLife Vitamin E supplement (take $ off your order with code LYNN)

Vitamin E works miraculously for protecting your skin from the inside out. It is a fat soluble vitamin that has so many benefits, but when it comes to protecting your skin, it acts as a buffer against the damaging effects of free radicals.

So what about going outside for longer than 15 minutes or at a peak time? That is a totally different story than everything outlined above, because too much UV exposure can be bad news for your skin.

Moving on to sunscreen…

There are two types of sunscreen: chemical and physical. Chemical sunscreen contains chemicals to prevent burning etc. and physical sunscreens are just that – a physical barrier so that the UV rays bounce right off of your skin.

Evidence has shown that some chemical sunscreen ingredients are systemically absorbed and may be contributing to environmental damage {source}. Chemical sunscreens employ a potent combination of chemicals like oxybenzone, octinoxate (octyl methoxycinnamate), homosalate, octisalate, octocrylene, and avobenzone, many of which are endocrine disruptors. Endocrine disrupters aren’t great for anyone, but they’re especially nasty for little ones. You bet your bottom dollar I am never putting a chemical sunscreen on my baby!

Anyway. I am all about physical sunscreens, and like many beauty products, I have tried 920405 physical sunscreens and I believe I found THE ONE. If you haven’t found one you like yet, keep testing. Some are chalky, some are hard to blend, some are dry, and everyone is different.

My favorite physical sunscreen is Juice Beauty’s Sport Sunscreen with an SPF of 30. If I am going to be out for more than 15 minutes in peak sunlight hours, I slather it all over my body and on my face. I’ll give you a huge tip on applying it to your face: use a beauty sponge. It glides on so effortlessly with a damp Beauty Blender/sponge. And do not forget your eyelids! They are the thinnest part of your skin on your face and no one wants sagging eyelids – am I right?

So…the moral of the story is to get a little bit of sun exposure without protection at least a couple of days per week for a limited amount of time. And if you’re going to be out in the sun, especially during peak hours, please wear a chemical sunscreen and don’t forget your eye lids!

xo
Lynn

In: Beauty, Real Talk, Wellness

sign up to the all gussied up newsletter for a good time 💃

join the club

You’ll Also Love

Get The Best Hair Ever
Nail Rehab
Natural Makeup: Lawless Beauty

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Next Post >

Pregnancy Nutrition: Taboo Edition

trending now

instagram

@allgussied_up

for the best PSL without the nasties… ☕️ B for the best PSL without the nasties… ☕️ 

Blend (all organic):
1 can coconut cream
1/3 cup of pumpkin purée
1/4 a cup of brown sugar
1 tablespoon pumpkin spice
1/2 teaspoon sea salt

…a total fall/winter vibe 🍁 ☕️
a few ways that getting dressed/fashion is spiritu a few ways that getting dressed/fashion is spiritual:

1. experimenting with what you wear can help you see yourself in a different way & provokes inspiration.
2. Getting dressed in the morning is a way to have fun by expressing your beautiful soul for everyone to see. 
3. when you feel confident in what you’re wearing, you FEEL good.

my style evolution: I used to wear a lot of black & shunned expressing my femininity with the clothes that I wore because I was following trends. NO MORE. now: give me all the feminine LEWKS and colors 🌈 

HBU?
on motherhood & embracing femininity 💖 During on motherhood & embracing femininity 💖

During the first few months of my Z’s life, my body & soul felt burnt out. looking back, it was hard (and still is!) to prioritize just taking a few deep breaths each day. totally not trying to sound dramatic like so many Oprah IG captions 🤣 but it’s the truth.

during a meditation session recently, my intuition called out and invited me to reconnect with my feminine side. I realized I had abandoned much of this ‘side’. this is where the journey of activating my divine feminine energy began for me.  I’ll be sharing bits of my re-discovery here in hopes it will help you overcome the same and step in to your wholeness. 🤍

by wholeness, I mean not DOING IT ALL. being intentional & redefining the feminine experience. 

some of the words I have reclaimed include…

emotional, ease, wild, & healing 

do you have words to describe your feminine energy?
this foundation is so so good 💖 it’s like a f this foundation is so so good 💖 it’s like a filter in a bottle which is SAYING SOMETHING especially when it comes to clean beauty products. @saintcosmetics products are just as beautiful, luxurious & glam as they are clean and powerful ✨
one year ago ✨8 months pregnant & we’d just mo one year ago ✨8 months pregnant & we’d just moved from CA to AZ 🌵…& it was one of the best things we’ve ever done. 

reflecting back on the past year has put into perspective how critical taking the leap and moving to a new place has been for my personal growth and development, and if you’re thinking about moving, this is your sign to do it!

the change of environment has been SO beyond magical for many reasons…it’s taken me out of my comfort zone, given so many new and exciting experiences, and expanded social connections. 

🤍10/10 recommend, even when you’re super pregnant 😜
Gua Sha routine for a smooth forehead ✨ Gua Sha routine for a smooth forehead ✨
just the best organic, pure & hydrating shampoo & just the best organic, pure & hydrating shampoo & conditioner ✨ if you have dry hair or scalp…@innersense hydrating hairbath and conditioner combo are both so amazing ✨ I have struggled with finding a shampoo in particular that doesn’t irritate my scalp psoriasis. Even with other clean products, my scalp was not happy and it’s such a relief to find a product that WORKS that isn’t medicated or full of crap ingredients. so excited to share with y’all as I have always shared my scalp/hair journey and finally feel like my scalp is THRIVING 💖
do you have naturally wavy or curly hair? I have a do you have naturally wavy or curly hair? I have always had very wavy hair and up until now have never really embraced it. 

this look is one of my faves as it doesn’t take much time and it shows off my natural hair texture. 

…the sea salt & texturizing spray from @beautybyearth is a game changer - it does exactly what the name says AND it’s a fab clean hair product 💖

Shop it: https://amzn.to/3pS9Tlz
do you sew? 🧵 decided to buy a sewing machine, do you sew? 🧵 decided to buy a sewing machine, inspired to make Zyla some clothes and bows 🪡🎀 …I feel like either baby clothes are cheap and made of bad materials OR they’re insanely expensive for her to just grow out of them quickly. so here we are 😅 please share any tips for this newbie if you have some 🙏

join to receive glam finds & new posts

Copyright © 2023 All Gussied Up · Theme by 17th Avenue