Dr Uzma Olbrich on how to protect our skin

How many women do you see at your clinic with skin damage from the sun? 

I would say over 70% of women present sun damage to varying degrees. Some visit because they are aware that they have sun damage and want correction, whereas others come to the clinic for unrelated treatments and are unaware they have sun damage. 

It’s especially common in those in their 20s and early 30s. The signs are there though; for example, increased freckling with sun exposure – it may look attractive in younger years, however, there is damage happening and as the person progresses into middle age, those freckles become larger patches of pigmentation, which is less attractive and more ageing.  

What are some simple tips you can do to protect your skin each day? 

Sun protection, sun protection, sun protection! You should wear SPF 365 days of the year, even when it is cloudy. Harmful rays are still present and hitting the skin causing damage. 

Hydration is important for the body and your skin – drink plenty of water during the day.

Vitamin C creams are great protection against harmful free radicals that we find in the atmosphere – plenty of antioxidant activity. The creams do need to be medical grade to be potent enough to benefit. 

A medical grade cleanser

To clean away dirt, makeup, pollution, oil 

A toner 

To control the damaging oil in your skin. This helps with inflammatory, oily diseases like acne and spot breakouts. 

As we get older…

Consideration should be given to adding in anti-ageing products like Vitamin A (also known as Retinol). This is THE magic ingredient to fight against ageing changes as it stimulates your skin cells and increases your collagen production. Collagen is ‘king’. It keeps our skin plump and elastic. It is possible with proper care and attention to keep our skin looking and feeling supple with minimal line formation well into our 40s and 50s if we start early enough. 

What should you look for in SPFs /sunscreens?

Choose a sunscreen with “broad spectrum” protection. 

Sunscreens with this label protect against both UVA and UVB rays.  All sunscreen products protect against UVB rays, which are the main cause of sunburn and skin cancers. But UVA rays also contribute to skin cancer and premature ageing. 

Look for a sun protection factor (SPF) of 30 or higher. 

The SPF number is the level of protection the sunscreen provides against UVB rays. Higher SPF numbers do mean more protection, but the higher you go, the smaller the difference becomes. SPF 30 sunscreens filter out about 97%, SPF 50 sunscreens about 98%, and SPF 100 about 99%. No sunscreen protects you completely.

‘Water-resistant’ does not mean ‘waterproof.’

No sunscreens are waterproof or “sweatproof,” and manufacturers are not allowed to claim that they are. If a product’s front label makes claims of being water-resistant, it must specify whether it lasts for 40 minutes or 80 minutes while swimming or sweating. For best results, reapply sunscreen at least every two hours and even more often if you are swimming or sweating. Sunscreen usually rubs off when you towel yourself dry, so you will need to put more on. 

We recommend the ZO Sunscreens. They are all broad-spectrum, so they protect against UVA and UVB. But they also protect against damaging infra red-A (IR-A) rays and high energy visible (HEV) rays from light sources like screens. These rays penetrate deeper than UVA and UVB and are linked to more age-related changes. 

All of the ZO sunscreens also contain a timed-release antioxidant complex that slowly releases protection against free radicals over a 12 hour period. They are the most effective sunscreens around, providing superior protection against all environmental pollutants.