Why Wearing Sunscreen All Day May Be Doing More Harm Than Good for Women Over 40

Why Wearing Sunscreen All Day May Be Doing More Harm Than Good for Women Over 40

In this thought-provoking episode, Angela Foster sits down with renowned beauty expert and author Liz Earle MBE to challenge conventional wisdom about sunscreen and sun exposure. Liz discusses why current public health messaging around universal, all-day SPF use might be too extreme, potentially robbing us of vital Vitamin D and other essential benefits of natural daylight.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Many people assume they still get Vitamin D while wearing sunscreen. However, Liz points out that this only happens because most people apply it too thinly or miss spots.

Applying high SPF when it is completely unnecessary, like on a dark winter morning during an underground commute, is a sign that public health messaging has become too broad.

Our skin isn't just a physical barrier; it actively receives light and communicates with the body's immune system.

Exposing your skin to gentle, early-morning sunlight (when the UV index is low) acclimatizes it.

Medical professionals and researchers are beginning to speak out against extreme sun avoidance.

BEST MOMENTS

"When people say, 'Yes, you get Vitamin D from the sun when you're using sunscreen,' yeah, because you're not using your sunscreen properly. You're actually allowing some of that UVB to come through the skin."

"The worst thing that we can do is stay indoors all year and then rush out for our two-week summer beach holiday and fry ourselves on the beach... That's because our skin has not got used to the sunlight."

"The skin is actually an organ of light reception. This is what we're just beginning to understand, that the skin has light receptors on it for reasons—they're signaling, it's not just blocking and keeping our insides intact."

"I don't know if you take collagen supplements, I do, but actually by going out in early morning light, I'm telling my body to make more collagen. So it's preparing the skin."

"He says that he thinks that we will look back at this time and our lack of sun exposure as being as damaging to our health as smoking."

VALUABLE RESOURCES

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