Almost half of UK adults do not apply sunscreen daily. If you think even this woeful figure sounds surprisingly high, I agree with you – some surveys have daily SPF use as low as 8% in the male adult population.
My own feeling, based on hundreds of conversations with the UV-reckless, is that most would probably offer “greasy texture and feel” as their defence. And yet almost a third of the population wear moisturiser.
So what if I told you that sunscreen formulation has improved dramatically in the past five years, offered up some excellent, modern SPFs that feel exactly the same as a lightweight, non-greasy face lotion, and promised that you’ll barely even know you’re reducing your risk of premature skin ageing and cancers as you wear them?
Let’s start with the comfiest sunscreen yet from the always dependable La Roche Posay. Anthelios UVAIR Serum Sunscreen SPF50 (£26) comes in clear and tinted versions. I won’t dwell on the latter because there’s only one shade of tan and this sullies what is an otherwise flawless formulation. The clear version, however, suits every skin tone and is a near-perfect daily sunscreen for all types – non-oily while still comforting drier skin, invisible, lightweight and obedient under makeup. One can never say anything is suitable for all sensitive skins (someone will always react to any product and this is not without fragrance), but so far it’s been tried by friends with rosacea, eczema and acne, and in all cases I had to ask for it back.
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Similarly faultless is Aqua Glowing Sunscreen SPF50 (£15.30) from Dr Althea, a high-street Korean brand that has yet to disappoint me. This is for drier skins, which may cause you to expect heavy duty grease, but there is none. What a glorious everyday sunscreen at a good price. Fluid, quickly absorbed, soothing (thanks to panthenol and ceramides) and leaving a fresh, not at all makeup-like glow, it stays healthily moist-looking for hours, even on my very dry face.
Finally, Naked Sundays’ CabanaClear Water Gel Serum SPF50 (£30) is just about the wateriest, lightest, freshest-feeling and least visible sunscreen on the market. It leaves even the oiliest sunscreen refuseniks without a leg to stand on.
None of these sting my eyes, which is my recurring issue with many other synthetic UV filters, and all can be used instead of moisturiser if you only have the will to apply one layer of a morning.
