posted 5 days ago
Joining in a bit late... so reviving this I guess. Here are some thoughts I had when reading this thread that I thought I'd share.
What one decides to do with one's body is their choice from my perspective, so in relation to that, no, you don't really need to wear sunscreen, or protect your skin from the sun otherwise. There may be consequences though. What the consequences will be can vary per person as we all have different genetics, health histories, and so forth.
It seems the OP is primarily concerned about wrinkles and possibly leathery skin. In terms of that, I think sunscreen doesn't make a difference compared to simply wearing a moisturizer... as sunscreen can act like a moisturizer. I don't think that UV plays a part in that directly. It seems to me that wrinkles and hard thick leathery skin are a result of dryness that a combo of lack of hydration as well as lack of oils. If you think of how people care for soft leathers to keep them supple--by oiling them in various ways and massaging it in--that's also what can help your skin stay supple as well. (I'd use a different type of oil though). Skin is living leather. Also think of a raisin in relation to a grape, what's the difference? Hydration! As people age their hormones reduce and that reduces the oils in their skin and collagen too, also absorption of nutrients and conversions reduce so more are needed and this affects hydration. There are other reasons aging people tend to get dehydrated more, but yeah, I believe those two things are a big reason for wrinkles and all. Nutrition can affect hydration as well.
Now, in terms of protecting your skin from the sun vs getting the benefits from the sun, there are other considerations. The first is back to that reduction in conversion that happens as you age--this affects the ability to convert sun exposure to vitamin D in the body too. In addition to that, some people (like me) simply don't have great or any conversion to begin with, so sunlight's not gonna help their vitamin D levels. But the health benefits from sunlight are not only about vitamin D, or UV, as the infrared is probably more important healthwise than the UV... and that goes through clothing, sunscreen, and UV protection, etc. So we can get health benefits from sunlight without UV exposure if we want or need.
Something people often don't think about or know is that sunscreen doesn't protect your skin from all of the UV spectrum that clothing can. Sunscreen is rated in SPF (Sun Protection Factor) and it's to prevent sunburn, not necessarily UV damage. It primarily is effective for UV-B rays, and it is prone to failure due to uneven application, missing spots, sweating it off, swimming it off, rubbing it off, and so forth. People often feel invincible just because they wear it so expose that skin for much longer than they would otherwise, and longer than it's actually rated for. Because I have all the skin allergies and all I've always suspected that the chemicals in them could be contributing to skin cancers of certain kinds--but that's probably because of my bias, not necessarily scientific. The more natural ones with zinc oxide or titanium are still an issue for my skin, but I suspect they're not as much of a toxic situation as the chemicals in the other sunscreens, yet it seems like they can get stuck in pores which isn't great either. Again, this is from my perspective of not wearing anything on my skin and having allergies, not from science.
When you physically cover your skin for UV protection that is measured in UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor), and that's about the amount of UV rays that make it through the fabric or substance. This is for both UV-B and UV-A and it does not require reapplication, the protection is there for as long as you wear it. It's prone to failures of gaps at the edges of it, or reflections from underneath it if there's a gap, but generally is less prone to failure like sunscreen. So UPF of 50 will always have way more protection than SPF of 50.
My current approach to being out in the sun is quite different than the OP and many of you, and it's developed over time, based on my experiences. So, yeah, as I mentioned above I personally cannot wear sunscreen (and I've tried all the options, believe me), or pretty much anything on my skin without my skin having issues. Wrinkles and premature aging isn't one of them though. I have a multitude of skin allergies, rosacea, and sensitivity to irritation. No, it's not toxins, I've led an extremely clean life for several decades, eating all organic most if not all of it grown, wildcrafted, and/or harvested myself, living in remote areas with a lot of nature and clean air...no soaps, scents, etc. and all the non-toxic things and yet still have had 20 basal skin cancers removed in the last decade and a half (not to mention all the 'pre-cancers' frozen off which are countless). All the non-toxic living has helped me be healthy in many ways (and I have recovered from an autoimmune syndrome and some other things through it). I'm in my 60's and people still say I look half my age, and I feel younger than that actually, but all of this has not prevented the skin cancers or skin allergies.
Most of the cancer spots have been on my face, probably because that area is harder to cover, but also they've been in areas my skin has been physically irritated by something else (hatband, reading glasses, backpack, basal body thermometer, etc). Sure I've worn hats, neck gaitors, long sleeves, long pants and all (but rarely sunglasses as my skin is irritated by where they touch my nose), and not gotten burnt for I don't know how long (must be decades too).
The thing that most people don't think about is, no matter how large the brim is on the hat it doesn't protect you from reflections or the sun when it's low (like at the times of day they say are 'safe' to be out). After my last Mohs surgery I figured that must be what's been happening. I thought I had it dealt with as there was a gap of about 7 years between the first 19 cancer spots discovered and the last one discovered last year. Now I'm thinking I need to cover my face as well, but while the sun gaiters are handy for that, they are too much irritation for my skin, as are sunglasses (the main reason I haven't worn them).
When I had the first 18 removed it was before Mohs surgery was 'the thing' and honestly, it was a lot less destructive, so not as much of a big deal. The stitches healed quickly and without changing my face, and even when there was a big hole left to close on its own, it did, leaving less evidence than Mohs. It was just as effective too. I never had a spot return. The description of Mohs sounds like it should be less destructive, but nope. Now the only thing they know how to do is Mohs anymore, and it really sucks. I can't imagine what my face would be like if they'd all been taken off via Mohs--I wouldn't have any skin left. Every time they do Mohs, even if it's just one pass, they end up cutting out a whole lot of other skin in order to close it up, and that's so destructive. If I hadn't experienced excisions, electrodessication and curettage (ED&C), etc. before the Mohs I've had I wouldn't know there was anything else better, but now that I've had another Mohs without any other options, I'm keen to do everything I can to avoid another one.
So, I've come up with a couple of options for my face: a UPF 50+ rated face shield or a mulberry silk full face mask. The silk mask is waaay more comfortable. You would think that the face shield would be cooler temperature-wise to wear, but it isn't somehow, even though it sits away from my face and the mask sits on it. Also, the shield gives me a headache because the headband it is mounted on is so tight. And because it is polycarbonate, it's shiny and since it sits away from my face a bit, reflections get in there which kind of defeats the purpose. I discovered over the last year that my skin is fine and dandy with mulberry silk satin on it, so the mask works well for that as it also doesn't have glues or irritating stitches to rub either. The only thing is, I kind of look like I'm in a religious sect or something because of being so covered with just a slit for my eyes.. which also means my eyelids and between my eyes are exposed. I wouldn't care how I look to others normally, but in this part of the country that can make me a bit of a target.
I've gotten big UV rated sunglasses to cover that area and I can actually wear them on my face since it sits on the silk not my skin! The sunglasses actually make it look kinda' cool and nifty, kind of like a motocross rider or something, so that's been my new outdoor thing. I have a few certified UPF 50+ sun hoodies with a brim built in to cover my head and keep the sun from getting into my eyes if I'm not wearing the glasses without having to have a hat band on my skin. I make sure to not wear the glasses for at least 20 minutes when I first go out first thing in the morning for circadian rhythms and all, then I put on the glasses and get more serious about work that needs eye protection. The hoodie is great in that it takes care of what a hat, neck gaiter, sleeves, gloves, etc all did. It zips up to just below my eyes, but the zipper is too much for my nose, so the face mask deals with that face part and more. The sleeves have thumb holes to keep the sleeves down over your hands to protect them too. When I go inside somewhere in town I can take off the glasses and mask, unzip the hoodie putting the hood off my head, take my thumbs out of the thumb holes and push the sleeves up, and people are fine with that. I have pockets for the mask and glasses so I'm good to go.
My solutions to being out in the sun without being an issue for my tricky skin are still evolving, but I'm thinking that I'm getting close with this. I'd like to try trading the sun hoodie for a denim bonnet or sun hoodie with brim when it's not the hot season, something with more natural fabrics. Those UPF 50+ things are polyester based which I'm not fond of, however they are also cooling which helps at this time of year. The silk mask is double sided so if my face sweats the outer layer is still protective (UPF of silk goes down radically when wet). I'm thinking I can maybe line some things with silk where it hits my skin as needed...
I got a bit off-topic into clothing there, but since some other people in this thread have had some of the challenges I've had I thought I should include some solutions I've found along with the issues my skin has with the sun and things to protect it from the sun.
Updated to add: Just realized I should clarify about what kind of mask it is. The silk full face mask has a horizontal seam approximately between the nose and mouth which overlaps and has a gap in the stitching such that you can breath quite well with it on. The gap opens if/when you need more air, but because it's overlapped it doesn't let sun in. So this isn't a thing for protection of airborne things, it's for sun protection. It has a little bit of wire at the very top to keep it up and that kind of curls away from my face so it doesn't rub, yet keeps the fabric there. It's loose enough that my face doesn't feel constrained, just plan comfy. I've used it at night sometimes when the mosquitos are biting and it works well for preventing that too.
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