Natural Ways to Protect Yourself from the Sun
By Sara Butler
Everyone knows that sunscreen is important to protect your skin from the harmful rays of the sun, but is sunscreen your only option? When you’re around water, sunscreen is essential since light can intensify the rays of the sun and burn you. But if you forget the sunscreen during other outdoor activities, you don’t have to turn back. Here are a few natural ways you can protect yourself from the sun.
Your Clothes
If you’re going to be out in the sun on a hike, while gardening, or doing some other outdoor activity, your clothing choices are important. Long-sleeved shirts and pants will help to shield you; darker colors will help to protect your body better than light ones. As a bonus, long-sleeved shirts and pants will also help protect you from bugs that like to bite, such as mosquitoes!
Use UV-Repellent
There are laundry detergents you can wash your clothes with that will make them UV-repellent. When you wash your clothes with these types of detergents, microscopic crystals coat the surface of the clothing and make it more difficult for UV rays to penetrate and help keep your skin protected in the process.
Get a Hat
A wide-brimmed hat is a great idea to protect your face and neck from the sun. Remember, the skin on your face burn easily, so providing shade for it is very important when you’re outside. Just don’t get a straw hat since they have tiny holes that let sunlight in.
Use the Shade
When you’re outside you should find shade and use it whenever you can. If you’re going to be at the beach, take an umbrella to set up and give you a place to hide from the sun. During the hottest parts of the day when the sun’s rays are most intense, you might want to try to be inside as much as you can.
Warnings to Remember
It’s important to remember that even when it’s cold or cloudy outside, you can still get burned. So, don’t assume on cloudy or cool days that you don’t have to do anything, or you may regret it. You can also get burned through glass or when you’re underwater, so take steps to protect your skin in those situations.
We need the sun to be healthy, but it also poses a great risk to health if you have too much of it. So, take care of yourself in the sun all the time!
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Fitchburg, Wisc.