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We live in the part of the world that takes sun seriously, and rightly so. Every spring the sunscreen questions start up again, and the one we hear most is whether the natural mineral ones really protect you as well as the usual chemical sprays. Short answer, yes, if you use them properly. Here is how to choose one you will actually put on.
A mineral sunscreen uses zinc oxide, and sometimes titanium dioxide, to sit on top of the skin and physically block and scatter UV. A chemical sunscreen uses filters that absorb UV and turn it into a little heat. Both can hit SPF50, both are regulated, and both work. The reasons people move to mineral are usually sensitive skin, pregnancy, small children, or simply wanting fewer ingredients and something kinder to the water when you go for a swim.
The old knock on zinc was the ghost look, that chalky white film. Formulas have come a long way. The clear zinc options rub in far better than the zinc your dad wore on the beach in the eighties, and there are tinted versions that suit medium skin tones and double as a light base. If you have deeper skin, go for a tinted mineral or a well made chemical formula, because a heavy white cast is the fastest way to talk yourself out of wearing sunscreen at all, and the sunscreen you skip protects nobody.
SPF is only half the story. The number tells you about protection when you apply the full amount, which for a whole body is around a shot glass, roughly a teaspoon for the face and neck alone. Almost everyone puts on far too little. Apply generously twenty minutes before you head out, and top up every two hours and after swimming or towelling off, whatever the bottle promises about being water resistant.
If you snorkel or dive, mineral filters are the ones generally considered friendlier to reefs, which matters on a trip up the coast. For everyday city wear, the thing that counts is whether the sunscreen feels nice enough that you reapply, so a lighter face formula you do not mind wearing under makeup will always beat a thick one that lives in the drawer.
The tubes are your everyday body sunscreen, the sticks are brilliant for ears, noses and the tops of little feet at the beach, and there is a gentle baby formula for the youngest ones. The INIKA is the one people reach for on the face because it wears well under makeup.
Put it on before you get dressed so you do not miss the edges. Do not forget ears, the part in your hair, the back of the neck and the tops of your feet, which are the spots we see burnt most often. And remember a hat and shade are still your best friends between ten and three. Sunscreen is the backup, not the whole plan.
The full range is under Skin Care, and if you would rather talk it through with a person we are at 936 Anzac Parade, Maroubra, open seven days.
