If you spend a lot of time outdoors, you need to protect your skin from the sub. You can do this with sunscreen, but it’s not always enough. In this article, we will examine the effectiveness of sun-protective clothing in safeguarding your skin.
What is UPF?
Two terms are thrown around regarding sun protection: Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) and Sun Protection Factor (SPF). The word SPF is more common because it describes how the strength of sunscreen is measured.
On the other hand, UPF refers to how much UV radiation, whether UVA or UVB, a fabric allows to reach your skin. Wearing a piece of fabric with UPF 50 will block 98% of harmful rays from the sun.
What Are The Best Sun Protective Clothing To Have?
Not all types of clothing protect your skin from the sun equally. When it comes to colors, very bright or very dark clothing is best. UPF clothing absorbs UV rays rather than letting them through to the skin, so these colors are better than light ones for keeping your skin safe.
Your fabric choice also plays a vital role in its UPF. For instance, materials like denim or wool that are tightly woven are far better than see-through or thin fabrics. It’s also best to get fabrics such as unbleached cotton, satiny silk, and shiny polyester when shopping.
Sun Protective Clothing vs. Normal Clothing
It might look like any clothing can protect you from the sun, which is valid to some extent. For example, a typical cotton shirt has a UPF of about 5 due to its loose composition. Multiple kinds of everyday clothing have tiny holes that let light in, but sun-protective clothing does not.
Sun Protective Clothing vs. Sunscreen
Your sun-protective clothing and sunscreen need to work hand in hand. You should if you can easily cover your skin with fabrics designed to keep UV rays out. Most of these specially made clothes have a UPF of 50 or more, providing more protection than sunscreen.
If you can’t cover your skin correctly with clothing, sunscreen is a great alternative. That said, the best thing you can do for your skin is wear sun-protective clothing and use sunscreen generously on your exposed skin.
Conclusion
Invest in sun-protective clothing made of UPF fabric with UPF 50 when spending time outdoors. You can always use sunscreen for the areas that clothes can’t cover.
