Exposure to the sun and its ultraviolet rays is the most harmful thing you can do to your skin. Many people have had skin cancer as a direct result of too much sun exposure. Imagine, you are trying to reduce the signs of aging or attempting to bronze the tone of your skin and you end up with a cancerous cyst on your face or body that has to be removed. Take great care of your skinespecially if you are going to be outdoors, even just for a little while.

They say that wearing sunglasses any time you are outside during the day is a very good idea. But you must choose carefully which kind of sunglasses you purchase, because if they do not have a certain percent of UV protection, they will not work as well as they should. You want the highest quality sunglasses you can get. However, as you know wearing a good pair of sunglasses does not take the place of wearing sunscreen. You will always want the sunscreen, and you may want both. Both methods of protection used together are the preferable, and most recommended course of action to take against the harmful effects of the sun.

Of course, the skin care manufacturers and professionals at the beauty counters in department stores or of the skin care products in the make-up isle of your local grocery store have caught on to this public spread of skin care awareness and have adapted their products accordingly.

Almost every make-up base has an SFP of some sort some of them contain amounts of sunscreen as low as SPF 5, but usually the SPF level is somewhere in the vicinity of SPF 15. By this method, many make-up manufacturers believe that more women will buy their products instead of opting for a shiny face and smelling like the local pool.

The same is true for moisturizers. You can find daytime moisturizers in both expensive and inexpensive stores that also contain SPF levels, again usually SPF 15. It is recommended that you wear these moisturizers alone or underneath your make-up.

So that takes care of your face, whether you shop at inexpensive stores or at stores that are a bit more expensivewhat you really need is that SPF. But now what about the rest of you? What about your arms and legs and belly showing in the sun? Remember to purchase plenty of sunscreen this season for you and your kids protection. And, believe it or not it is recommended that one wear sunscreen even in the wintertime or on a cloudy day. The sun is still there, and as a matter of fact, it has been said that the sun can be worse on your skin when the sky is slightly cloudy because the UV rays have a sort of prism-effect as they penetrate the clouds, magnifying the UV damage that can be caused to the skin.

Mainly my point is, protect yourself and your family. No matter how small or seemingly trivial the errand may beeven if you are just running in and out of the store, use sunscreen and keep yourself safe.