We totally get it, mornings are hard. Most days, you're likely rushing out the door to make it to school or work just barely on time. You might throw on a swipe of mascara and lip gloss and call it a day, but beauty experts agree there's one step you should never skip in your a.m. routine: sunscreen. No, sunscreen isn't a product you should reserve solely for trips to the beach. Here, top doctors explain the biggest reasons why you should put sunscreen on every morning, plus how to choose the right sunscreen for you.
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You Need Protection, Even When It's Not Sunny Outside
You might think sunscreen is only necessary at the height of summer when you've got plans to lounge outside by the pool, but the sun's UV rays are always present. Even on cold and cloudy days, UV rays from the sun can damage your skin. "UV rays are present year-round and of equal intensity during the daytime throughout the year, including winter," says Marnie Nussbaum, MD, a dermatologist in New York City and member of the Women's Dermatologic Society. "They can even penetrate clouds and glass."
Melanie Palm, MD, a dermatologist and cosmetic surgeon in San Diego, adds that cloudy days still allow for about 80 percent of the UV exposure as a sunny day. "UVB rays are blocked by windows, but the longer wavelengths of UVA that lead to skin aging, sunburn and melanoma can still be transmitted through glass," she says. So if you drive during the day or sit near a window at work, you're going to want to slather on the SPF before you head out for the day.
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You'll Keep Yourself Looking Young for Years to Come
If you ask a dermatologist for anti-aging advice, chances are they're going to tell you to add sunscreen to your morning skin care routine, pronto. That's because sunscreen protects you from UVA rays, the ones that accelerate signs of aging. UVA are the longer of the UV rays, meaning they can penetrate your skin more deeply. "UVA affects collagen structure, transforming the normal triple helix structure that looks like straight, uniform rods of dry spaghetti to broken, fragmented and different-sized tangles," says Palm. "This translates to visible skin changes, including textural changes, wrinkles and a sallow discoloration to the skin."
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You'll Shield Yourself From Skin Cancer
More than four million cases of basal cell carcinoma (the most common form of skin cancer) are diagnosed every year in the United States, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation. That's a startling statistic, but it's one that can be drastically improved if we all get better at incorporating sunscreen into our daily lives. "Daily sunscreen use is the best skin cancer tool short of avoiding direct midday sun exposure altogether," says Fayne Frey, MD, a dermatologist in West Nyack, New York. While it used to be a popular belief that skin cancer was caused by UVB radiation, there is now evidence that UVA radiation contributes as well, says Joshua Zuckerman, MD, a board-certified plastic surgeon in New York City. "UVB radiation penetrates the skin more superficially than UVA radiation and causes sunburn. It also damages the DNA of skin cells, producing genetic mutations that can lead to cancer," he says.
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You'll Steer Clear of Dark Spots
Wrinkles aren't the only signs of aging caused by the sun. "Sunscreen can also protect your skin from developing brown pigmentation or 'sun spots' which aesthetically age the skin," Nussbaum says. UVA rays are the ones that lead to dark spots and blotchy hyperpigmentation, says Palm. "UVA causes DNA changes in melanocytes, the pigment-producing cells of our body," she says.
