Here Comes the Sun...

...Hopefully very soon, for those of us living in the northern half the continent, as the dregs of a dreary winter linger too long.

As we head outdoors, come warnings about over exposure to the sun. The key issue is full spectrum protection. Protection from difference spectrums of sun light- UVC, UVB, UVA .

Current products to do a pretty good job of protection against skin burns, from radiation in the UVB spectrum. Consumers need to know that Sun Prevention Factor numbers or SPF, the numbers commonly found on product labels, ranging from 4- 40, are not a very good barometer of full spectrum protection.

The key ingredients to look for in full spectrum UVA protection are avobenzone (also known as Parsol 1789), Mexoryl SX, zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. There is on going research into the efficacy, or effectiveness of the ingredients.

There is also some dispute about the immune depressing factors of sunlight. As we move into spring and summer, there is a consistent public health advisory, to stay out of the sun between peaks hours, 10 Am-4PM. Such admonition pretty much precludes getting outside at all, if taken literally. And there is another school of thought, with a much more different perspective, exposure to sun light is crucial to the body's production of vitamin D

As Paul Harvey says ... Now the rest of the story... In a series of posts we'll cast a ray intending to gleam a "sun strategy"!