To not understand why some people won’t wear suncream?!

[ClandestineAdulation]

Currently sat in the garden and enjoying the sunshine with my factor 30 on... with the family and not one of them is wearing suncream.

I can see their skin burning.

They can see their skin burning.

But they think I’m weird for wearing suncream.

I don’t understand why some people would knowingly do this?!

Most British, pale skinned people have the mentality that lobster red is more attractive than glowingly pale. The number of times I’ve heard ‘well I burn but then I go brown after so it’s fine’... nothing infuriates me more than this!

I think I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve ever burnt in my life as I have a complexion which tans easily. Even so, I recognise that excessive sun is damaging and ageing to the skin, so wear a moisturiser with SPF in on my face and put suncream on if I’m going to be out in direct sunlight for an extended period of time

I burn easily so I do wear suncream. I tend to do factor 30 as all of the factor 50 formulas I have tried make my skin break out. Every day (all year round) I check my weather forecast app for the UV levels. If they go 4 or above I wear suncream.

DH was very much a carrot oil and sit in the beach type of person when he met me as he does tan (but will go red first). I have managed to get him to wear factor 6/8 on holidays and he has a special factor 30 scalp spray to stop his head burning. I still find it very hard to get him to wear sunscreen in the U.K. (other than the scalp spray) but he has on occasion used mine if out and about and he can feel himself burning.

For the person who asked about p20 it’s fantastic stuff and really does last all day. My biggest issue with it is that it does colour while clothes pale yellow. You can minimise it by applying the p20 as long before putting the clothes on as possible though, that really helps. And don’t get it in your eyes, you’ll feel it for hours!

It’s not always ignorance or laziness

For those of you who ARE open-minded, some of us are allergic (properly allergic meaning epipen in handbag EVERY time you leave the house) to the ingredients.

It is unfair that my family & friends feel unable to apply the usual brands (especially in spray formula) to themselves when with me because of risk of the vapour entering my airway & me having an anaphylactic attack.

I rarely wear it despite being fair skinned and easily burned - I limit my exposure and cover my skin with fabric instead if I have to be out in the sun.

Far safer than slathering myself in some pretty nasty chemicals which can be absorbed into the body via the skin.

"I'm usually the one handing out SS to white people or rolling my eyes at idiots claiming they don't burn so it's fine or they burn then go brown so it's worth it 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄"
Yep, me with mixed race DD handing out suncream to the parents for their blonde child!
DS school have a "don't forget suncream".photo shoot with two Y6 on their website. One white kid, one black. Top marks in my book!

I use Ambre Solaire Dry Mist which "feels" okay and have just put some on as I will be outside all day, albeit mostly in the shade. I love the smell of sun cream as it makes me think of holidays. Just returned from a fortnight in Greece and my legs are still pretty pale. I don't wear it daily as I'm stuck in an office all week but will at weekends if out and about. Went to the cricket in Melbourne on Boxing Day one year. 13 degrees and overcast so didn't bother. Still ended up with a pink face.

To not understand why some people won't wear sunscreen
I don't understand why some people feel the need to question what other people put in or on their own bodies.
Some people smoke. Some people drink wine every night. Some people eat 10 cadbury cream eggs in a row then come on mumsnet and start a thread about it. It's probably all for similar reasons. They just want to.

By the time I've slathered 4 kids I often forget myself! I do when I remember. I don't burn so it's easy to forget. I am looking rather David Dickinson-esque at the moment so I will try to remember more this week! My foundation has SPF but it's quite low.

Some bizzare but interesting comments on here!

I for one will slather myself in those chemicals because I would rather that than risk skin cancer. You don't need to sit in the sun for hours to get it. Several members of my family have had it. Also I'm so pale my face got burnt walking through Sainsbury's car park the other day.

You also can't reverse the aging process. My MIL has the skin of a 90 year old at 55, she spends a fortune on creams , make up and lotions but theres no denying it's because she's spent most of her life on holiday not wearing sun cream.

To not put it on a child I feel is a bit irresponsible, as they can't make that decision for themselves because they don't know the implications. Yes some sun exposure is beneficial of course but not prolonged!

I don't wear it. It's hard to find one without chemicals and I'm not putting that on my skin. I'm not pale, I don't sunbathe, I work an office job full time, I wear a hat etc and vitamin D is good for you.

BigCarrot So does mine. I choose a hat and sun glasses over the sun cream though.

Everything in the world is made of chemicals. Chemical is not a bad word. Some people won't wear sunscreen because it's 'full of chemicals', but presumably they are perfectly happy to take medicines when they are ill, use toothpaste, shampoo and moisturiser, use detergent and fabric conditioner etc. All made of chemicals, just like everything else.

I wonder if all these Sun worshippers realise how leathery and haggard they'll end up looking? Like Madge off Benidorm. Awful.

I had a skin cancer scare recently, and had it removed at a dermatologist, there was a huge sign up with sunscreen myths on it, the one I remember was that sunscreen doesn't stop you making vitamin D although a lot of people think it does.

I'm still waiting for my biopsy results and slather myself in suncream if I'm out, you can burn in the shade too

I wonder if all these Sun worshippers realise how leathery and haggard they'll end up looking? Like Madge off Benidorm. Awful.

In your opinion.

And yes, obviously I know that's how I'll look, like I said, I'm not stupid. I don't think it looks that bad and the joys of feeling the sun on me are worth it. To me.

Another P20 fan here. I generally only use it at weekends and on holidays because I wear white shirts for work and don't have time to apply and wait for it to dry. During the week if I'm out to my allotment I'll put some Nivea on but will still try and seek shade where I can. I've burnt far too many times and am fair skinned so am not taking any more chances

but I admit to thinking that people who smother themselves in high factor sunscreen without actually spending enough time in the sun to risk burning or even tanning in the first place are quite loopy

I have an autoimmune condition called vitiligo. My skin has stopped making melanin and instead will burn after 5 yo ten mins in the sun. I will never go brown.

So yeah people can think im loopy i dont care..ive had people today making comments on the amount of sunscreen ive put on today..annoys me

black - I smother myself in the stuff because I burn walking from the office to my car! I have vitiligo but it only affects one hand, the rest of me is just standard redhead

Me and ginger DP wear factor 50. They're amazed that I then get a light tan 🙄🙄
After much nagging our best friends will wear factor 30 and a hat. We're early 20s so find it ridiculous that people won't wear it .:. 50yos with bad sun damage look much worse than those who wore suncream and we're nicely tanned for their 20s....

Kingkiller - no not every chemical is bad but sunscreen contains some very unpleasant ones and they don't wash off either. They may protect against skin cancer but they are possibly a double edged word.

www.breastcanceruk.org.uk/news-and-blog/blog-do-uv-filters-increase-breast-cancer-risk/

Hence I prefer to protect my skin with hats, shirts and long trousers. I'm at high risk already for breast cancer without sunscreen possibly tipping the balance.

Im fair skin with loads of moles so I'm at risk of skin cancer.

I don't like the sun or the heat and I try my best to stay in from the sun. That's not always possible though. I don't own a car so going from A to B, I wear suncream. I do think applying it, is an absolute chore and a pain in the ass. If I was in a position to race around the house in the nip or my underwear for half an hour after applying it, it may not be too bad.

A group of teenage girls living on my road, turn sun burnt red many times. They are not wearing sun scream because they want to tan.

I'm interested in learning more about fabrics/spf.

I'm a knitter and I love all things wool. Apparently Merino wool has natural spf properties. Also it's supposed to keep you cool when it's warm, and warm when it's cold. I hope to do more research into this, just as a matter of interest/hobby.