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Choosing the Right Sunscreen

Summary & Participants

There are many situations in which you need sunscreen - and many types of sunscreen to choose from. How do you know you're picking the right kind? Our panel of experts will address the factors you should consider when deciding what to use.

Medically Reviewed On: June 23, 2008

Webcast Transcript

SUSAN CINGARI: Hello, I'm Susan Cingari, and welcome to our webcast in Miami.

We all know we should wear sunscreen when spending time outdoors to prevent skin damage and cancer. But there are a lot of sunscreens out there and if you're like most people, you may be confused when faced with the option of choosing them all.

Joining us now to discuss how to pick the right sunscreen are two dermatologists from the University of Miami. Dr. Betty Bellman, to my right, thank you, Dr. Bellman, for being here, and Dr. Barry Resnick to my left.

Let's start with you, Dr, Bellman, first. I go to the store, and I know I'm supposed to wear sunscreen and I'm out there, and I look at all these different products and I go, "Which one is the right one?"

What is SPF first, what do those numbers mean when it comes to sunscreen?

BETTY BELLMAN, MD: SPF is sun protective factor, and that mainly means UVB protection. It comes in all different types of numbers, 2 through 60, and basically what it means is if it takes 20 minutes for a person to get a sunburn, the SPF allows you to spend twice as much time in the sun to get that sunburn. So if it's an SPF 2, you can spend twice as long in the sun before you get sunburned. If it's SPF 15, you can spend 15 times longer in the sun before you get sunburned. That's what an SPF means.

SUSAN CINGARI: Now keeping with that same train of thought, is there a minimum of SPF we should use, say, for the time period, if you're out between 10 and 4, which we know is the worst time. Should you be using a higher SPF? That would seem to make sense to me.

BETTY BELLMAN, MD: All you need is an SPF 15, that is the main number that really the public should look for. The Academy of Dermatology has changed the regulation of the SPF factor to basically include 15 and 30, so 15 is really the number that people should be looking for when they're out in the store looking for sunscreen.

BARRY RESNICK, MD: While it's the minimum, I think that people should know that it's not a license to go out and sit 15 times as long in the sun knowing that you're protected, because people don't usually apply properly, They don't put it on in along enough time before they go out. And then when they go out in the sun, they go and they play in the water, they'll towel down, and you're taking that off of your skin, so you need to reapply it. There's a whole routine on how to do it that will enhance the protection.

And although we're now going to hopefully restrict ourselves between 15 and 30, there are people with skin conditions and skin diseases that are going to require more of a protection. The 60 is what we would call a sunblock. And for people who have those conditions or people who have undergone cosmetic procedures like laser resurfacing, a 60 is really important, especially in the days afterward, so that they protect themselves from overexposure.

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