This way you stay well protected, without greasy granules!
Of course, we wear a nice SPF every day – and in the summer, applying sunscreen is even more important! Sometimes, however, your sun protection can leave an unpleasant, gritty feeling on your skin. Dermatologist Macrene Alexiades explains why this happens and how we can prevent it. This way, we can comfortably stroll around in the sun all day long.
Guilty silicones
First of all, the big question is: how does sunscreen suddenly turn into such a grainy substance? “Pilling is when a product slides off your skin in the form of small flakes or grains. It can be caused by improper application of the product. It can also be caused by a flaw in the formula of the sunscreen or by products you’ve applied underneath,” Alexiades told PureWow. “Silicones like dimethicone, amodimethicone, and cyclomethicone are often added to sunscreen because they create a barrier on the top layer of your skin. This protects your skin from environmental factors like wind and water. It helps the product be effective, but it also causes it to clump together quickly on your skin.”
Clean base and right timing
Anyway, now we don’t have much influence on the formula of our SPF. You might consider choosing a different sunblock, but if you’re otherwise very satisfied, you might not want to do this. So the question is: what else can you do about it?
First of all, it is important to always start with a clean base. By first cleansing and exfoliating your skin, you remove dead skin cells. These can prevent the product from being absorbed into your skin as much as possible, which can then turn into – you guessed it – a grainy mess.
A second important step is to watch when you apply your sunscreen. You want to make sure that all the other products you applied first have fully absorbed into your skin. Only then is it a good idea to apply sunscreen. “That’s why I tell my patients to let each layer dry for ten minutes before adding sunscreen as the last step in their routine,” says Alexiades. It’s also important to let the sunscreen absorb properly. That’s why Alexiades recommends applying your SPF at least fifteen minutes before you go out into the sun.
Pay attention to the ingredients
Finally, the composition of an SPF has a big impact on its absorption. After all, you’ve probably noticed that one SPF leaves a soft, protected skin in no time, while another seems to hang on the skin forever as a greasy layer. That’s why it can be useful to take a critical look at the list of ingredients – not only of your sun protection, but also of your other skincare products.
So, while you should stay away from products with (too much) dimethicone, amodimethicone and cyclomethicone when it comes to sunburn, it is useful to pay attention to the amount of mineral oils and waxes in other skincare products. “These ingredients can form a kind of layer over the skin and make it less permeable,” Alexiades explains. “The larger molecules in these ingredients prevent the smaller molecules from penetrating your skin.” And that in turn leads to those annoying, gritty residues.
In short: pay close attention. And hey, if you notice that your SPF is leaving you with such a nasty feeling again, you can always opt for a refreshing shower and reapply your SPF. That way we can get through the summer!
Source: PureWow | Image: iStock
