1. Protect yourself from the sun
One of the most important ways to take care of your skin is to protect it from the sun – although that hole in the ozone layer hasn’t received ‘whole’ (see what I did there) lot of attention in recent years it’s still there – and still causing skin cancer across the world. A lifetime of sun exposure can cause wrinkles, age spots and other skin problems — as well as increase the risk of skin cancer, the most common form of cancer (and the most deadly) in the world.
Good sun practice:
Use sunscreen. Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30. Apply sunscreen generously, and reapply every two hours — or more often if you’re swimming or perspiring. Don’t trust ‘water resistant’ sunscreen – it isn’t. Seek shade. Avoid the sun between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., when the sun’s rays are strongest.
Wear protective clothing. Cover your skin with tightly woven long-sleeved shirts, long pants and wide-brimmed hats (white is the best). Also consider laundry additives, which give clothing an additional layer of ultraviolet protection for a certain number of washings, or special sun-protective clothing — which is specifically designed to block ultraviolet rays. But seriously – use sunscreen.
