Sunscreen on my face

[badger]

I had heard that it's not good to "rub in" sunscreen, that you're actually supposed to liberally apply without rubbing it into the skin. But, I could be barking mad, too.

[Reesha]

After a shower you don't really have to rub it in at all... it just goes right into your pores that are waiting with open arms.

[lunacycles]

+1 on the MyChelle sunscreen. I have a huge family history of skin cancer, mostly many, many basal cell carcinomas with a squamous here and there...and given I was raised at 5000 feet and in the sun every day and am of super fair skin and Northern European descent--I am basically a poster child for all high risk factors for skin cancer, and have had a few removed already.
Even though spf 28 may not seem adequate, I haven't found higher spf's to be much more effective. And what is really important to me is not dumping a bunch of weird chemicals onto my skin day in and day out, as there are some believers that sunscreens of that variety actually cause more skin cancer than prevent (controversial, but worth paying attention to).
It is really hard finding a good sunscreen without all the bizarre, unpronounceable things in it that won't turn your skin white, and the MyChelle is the best I have found to date. Expensive, but worth it.

[TrekTheKaty]

I wear a buff under my helmet with oversized sunglasses. Therefore, I only apply sunblock from below my eyes down. I use proactiv 15 or neutrogena. I recently did some research, to "review" for the summer--the key is to reapply often. I tried that on a long bike ride once--it was like giving myself a salt scrub! Apparently comical for those watching the spectacle also (I know--You could rinse your face with water beforehand. All I had was gatorade--you would think I learned my lesson when I fell once and had to choose between not washing out the road rash and washing out with gatorade )

[kjay]

Anng, why don't you try something like the Halo headband? Check out the web site and see if it would work for you. I use it faithfully and never get sweat in my eyes. Good luck.

[rowboatgirl]

Hey Badger and Lunacycles,

Thanks so much for a natural sunscreen recommendation. I have been scouring the internet all night for reviews for a good one to try.

One question...how does it hold up on long rides?? I live in Los Angeles and we're getting into some decently hot weather here. I ride anywhere from 30-70miles at a time and sweat enough that I'm covered in salt. Reapplying the sunscreen will definitely be an issue 30 miles into a ride with no way to wash off your face.

I am VERY concerned about my amount of sun exposure now that I've become an avid biker and was just warned about the dangers of chemical sunscreens. However, I need to make sure I don't get burned.

Any other advice or reviews of the product would be greatly appreciated!!

Thanks!!!!

[athenarides]

I use the KINeSYS spray sunscreen on my face (spray on fingers and gently apply, I put it on right after washing my face and it goes on easily) - it's oil/fragrance/alcohol free and I have had no issues with it getting into my eyes. I use it for running and cycling with equally awesome results. In fact, I rode 30 miles today with a couple of rest stops at the hottest/brightest time of day; I had no burn when I got home! I'm fair-skinned and usually burn very easily - in fact, I had a basal cell carcinoma removed from my forehead 6 months ago, so I'm extremely diligent/paranoid about excessive sun exposure. This has been my favorite sunscreen by far. No greasy feeling, no smell, no irritation, and best of all - no burn!!! Good luck!

[badger]

Since I'm prone to break outs from most sunscreens, I actually use the Mychelle when I swim outdoors (currently only once a week but soon twice a week, 1hr at a time). I don't think it's really meant for swimming, but it does say "reapply after swimming or excessive sweating", so I'm assuming it's at least water resistant to a degree.

I think most sunscreens do need to be reapplied often for it to have proper efficacy.

I only use the Mychelle for my face or it would become very expensive, so I use All-Terrain brand for aqua sports for the rest of my body when I swim. The link I gave you is for land-based sports and I believe this brand also uses mostly natural ingredients, if not all natural. The tubes are pretty small so with the amount I use I won't be able to get the tube to last me the season, but it's pretty cheaply priced. I must put a plug in for iherb.com here as I do all my vitamin and wellness shopping there. Super cheap compared to regular retail stores.

[OakLeaf]

I use All-Terrain brand for aqua sports for the rest of my body when I swim. ... I believe this brand also uses mostly natural ingredients, if not all natural.

Meh. That brand contains octinoxate and oxybenzone so it's not reef safe. (Don't know where you swim though.) And not known to be safe on humans either. May as well save your money and get Coppertone or Hawaiian Tropic, as some greenwashed brand.

Thanks for the link to the Mychelle product. I hadn't seen that on the shelves, but I'm definitely going to look for it. Going to the natural food store for anything besides natural foods drives me crazy, since it seems like 80% of what's on the shelves is totally greenwashed. Put it in an artsy package, put some natural fragrances in it, and charge triple the price of drugstore brands, and people will buy it.

[DeniseGoldberg]

I put lip balm on my eyebrows - not to protect my eyebrows but to create a stopping point for the sunscreen rolling into my eyes. Somehow the sliding sunscreen goes around (and not into) my eyes.

Try it - it really works!

--- Denise

[shootingstar]

Visited a dermatologist a few days ago.

After telling her I had been using 45 spf Neutrogena all over my body & face when I cycle, she said that real coverage means thick application. Which means after 5 applications the bottle is gone.

So her message was to reapply frequently. Also she agreed I have to use a higher spf on my face since it is more prone to freckling, etc.

She examined my skin allover my body and did say that I did a consistent job of using sunblock protection, given the amount of time (and years) I've been cycling outdoors. 'Course I don't swim nor lie out in a bathing suit for past many years, so large parts of my body has been protected.

I don't use it on my forehead since I have bangs, helmet and sunglasses.

AFter this dr.'s visit, I now definitely have no interest in wearing any sleevless / tanktops when exercising outdoors. I don't want to worry about skin exposure on yet another part of my body. Enough to be vigilant now for the skin areas that I regularily expose.

[silver]

I also wear a buff

http://www.buff.es/en/catalog_headwear.php?t=1

as a headband under my helmet. I get the buff with the UV protection and then I cut thme into two. So it's not as long and then I get two buffs for the price of one. I only wear sunscreen under my eyes and down.

Oh, here's a cool one....but it's not UV protection

http://www.rei.com/product/691367 the Pop bike one

[snapdragen]

I put lip balm on my eyebrows - not to protect my eyebrows but to create a stopping point for the sunscreen rolling into my eyes. Somehow the sliding sunscreen goes around (and not into) my eyes.

Try it - it really works!

--- Denise

This is what my dermatologist suggested, a lip balm with a high spf around the eyes.

[badger]

Meh. That brand contains octinoxate and oxybenzone so it's not reef safe. (Don't know where you swim though.) And not known to be safe on humans either. May as well save your money and get Coppertone or Hawaiian Tropic, as some greenwashed brand.

Hard to know which ones really are safe/good these days with so many conflicting information. Sometimes I wonder if wearing sunscreen/sunblock is really better than wearing nothing considering so many of them contain chemicals that can be carcinogenic or toxic themselves.

I tried using a sunscreen that was rated one of the safest on Skin Deep website. I tried the Keys brand, but it made me nervous as it contains nano particles. It also smelled bad and made me break out even though it claimed to be non comedogenic. It also said it only works if you reapply every 30 minutes...

While at Whole Foods I saw a tin of sunblock from Badger Balm (incidentally that's where I got my username from, I had just discovered Badger Balm). It was basically titanium dioxide and zind oxide. But the little tin cost $28, it would hardly last me one workout at the pool!

[Ann G]

Kjay, thanks for the halo headband idea. I see that they are available on ebay and a few other places too.