Just curious, what does my tin foil hat have to do with sun blocks?

I've never even seen an SPF 100. I think I saw an SPF 60, once. I usually get Banana Boat's SPF 45-50, because I'm about two shades darker than a sheet of paper. It's the right balance of high SPF, fairly inoffensive smell, and price. Of course, I use it only if I'm out in high sun for extended periods of time. Otherwise, I just try to cover up and stay in the shade. No matter how "non-greasy" a sunscreen claims to be, you can still feel a filminess on your skin and have it rub off on your clothes.

Be VERY careful when buying sunscreen. At the absolute minimum, make sure it is PABA free. At best, make sure it is PABA and oxybenzone free. Both those ingredients have been shown to actually INCREASE the risk of skin cancer because of how they chemically react to sunlight.

Is that a picture of Saran Wrap with an SPF? Or does SPF stand for something different in relation to cling wrap?

I'm all about the spray on kind in the aerosol can. That stuff is the best! It works really well and its not all lotion-ey. It's flippin' expensive though, like $15 a can or something

maths 101: 99% instead of 98% means that half as much gets through, so is twice as good.

I use between 50 and 70 whenever possible and carry the spray in my purse for quick touch ups throughout the day. I am roughly the shade of wonderbread

@HClay: Neotrogena just introduced an SPF 100 -- I've seen it in commercials, although not yet in stores.

I'm one of those "radioactive pale" redheads myself, and just for bonus kicks, after I cleared age 21 I seem to have developed an allergy to the active ingredients in almost all sunscreens, so I'm pretty much the only person you'll ever see in long sleeves and long pants at the beach. *sigh*

@valueofaloonie: That's foil, and it is Photoshopped on. Most foils come in 250 sqft rolls.

@HClay:

As a fellow pale dude, I know how you feel! I like Copportone Sport Gel. It's an alcohol-based product so it doesn't leave a greasy feel, and smells nice too. I think it's SPF 30 and includes avobenzone too.

@emona: Ha, well. I feel dumb now. Clearly it's time for more coffee.

So it sounds like you could buy the SPF 100 and use half an ounce and save money. You'll get almost the same amount of protection with half the cost.

Spray sunscreen is a lifesaver. I worked as a kayak excursion guide in Miami for a while (still do on occasion) and all I had to do was remember to spray myself down with SPF30 every 2 hours and I'd never get burned.

Lotion is such a pain that you never want to do it again after the first application, especially if I had to be using a paddle.

I tell this to everyone I see putting on sunscreen now. The extra SPF # is NOT worth the increase in price.

@HClay: Fellow white person here, I have always wondered about the effectiveness of anything above an SPF of 30. I only use sunscreen when I am in the sun for a long period of time (my body needs a bit of sun just like everyone!) but the higher the SPF the more expensive it gets as well.

Try the coppertone sprays, they are extremely strong smelling when it first comes out of the can but it goes away fast and then just smells normal. They seem to be a bit better than the normal lotion types when it comes to being greasy.

I have to shake my head at the thought that when I was growing up, I used SPF 8. In the Caribbean.

That was the first thing I mentioned to my dermatologist during my new-patient exam.

A shot glass is 1.5 ounces, but I understand leaving a little extra room for the alcohol in that sunscreen/margarita shooter.

@tobedetermined: Stop using tinfoil. It doesn't stop abductions/thought-reading. Here's a good place to start: [io9.com] or [www.stopabductions.com] . They are actually QUITE stylish.

*or, i guess, tequila. Me tired.

I only use sunscreen when I am out for a long time, because for short times I seem to be ok as long as I am careful and don't stay out too long. I am extremely pasty white as well. I have done just fine with one application of SPF 30 coppertone spray on most occasions and I have tried higher SPF's and it doesn't seem to make too much of a difference even on a very white body. As the SPF increases so does the price of the sunscreen unfortunately so if your using a lot or have a whole family using it that is something to consider.

The main thing I have found is you need to reapply after being in the water no matter if your sunscreen is waterproof or not, same as if your sweating really heavy or after towel drying. If your looking for something that isn't as greasy go with the Coppertone sprays.

Coppertone sprays are also good if your kids are too anxious to go into the water/sun and tend to leave off the sunscreen with the sprays you can just spray them, wait a few min and they can go, it takes much less time then applying a bottle of lotion.

I don't use the full ounce because I usually wear pants so I am only putting it on my arms, neck and face. I assume a full ounce is for a full body application when your wearing a swimsuit.

@HClay: I've been using Aveeno sunscreen and find it to feel like a light moisturizer, not heavy or greasy at all. It does a good job of keeping my library-paste-white skin from burning, too!

I wish those sunscreen sprays had never been invented. At a crowded pool that spray spreads ends up getting on people beyond where it's being aimed. If you don't like the smell or are allergic to it, you have a problem. Some people are considerate enough to take themselves/kids to a spot where they're not spraying their neighbors, but many don't.

I use Neutrogena's SPF 30 sensitive skin lotion and have been happy with it. Titanium dioxide, PABA-free, hypo-allergenic.

@HClay: I know someone who has SPF 75 sunscreen, but that is because he'll burn in minutes otherwise.

@wjh31: True, but most people compare sunscreen to wearing no sunscreen-the baseline is 0% blocked.

@downwithmonstercable: I think the aerosol can one can potentially be a waste, I like using the coppertone that comes in the pump spray bottle since you only spray out a little at a time.

@UnicornMaster: From what I've heard, we already underapply sunblock, by a huge factor, so almost none of us are getting the stated benefit even on the UVB blockage. The UVA isn't even included in the SPF, so you can be slathering on SPF 3000 and still get UVA-cooked. [www.consumerreports.org]

I used to work outside in Oklahoma a lot. I can vouch for Bullfrog. It truly isn't greasy either.

@Outrun1986: One long term problem, though, is that sunblock that keeps you pale isn't necessarily enough to be sunblock that reduces chances of skin cancer. So, speaking as a fellow paleface, the fact that we're avoiding burning and tanning doesn't mean we are out of the woods.

@DrGirlfriend: When I was growing up, we used sunTAN lotion. As in, stuff to make sure MORE nummy cancer rays got through.

@floraposte: Duh. Which it says in the source NYT article as well. Oh, well, at least I was redundant on useful info.

@valueofaloonie: I would have thought the "square feet" underneath the 250 would have given away that it was a shop since "New SPF 250 Square Feet" wouldn't really make sense even if SPF meant something else to foil.

@valueofaloonie: Reynolds Wrap.

@tobedetermined: If you coat yourself in tin foil, it will function as a complete UVA and UVB barrier. In effect, it has an SPF of infinity.

@HClay: Another pale redhead. Dermatologist told me I'd be fine in SPF 30 or 45.

No-Ad is good stuff, and cheap. I use Neutrogena SPF 15 on my face every day, winter and summer (the kind that sits on top of your skin, doesn't soak in, ergo all my cell phones end up with a film of sunblock on the screen).

But the best stuff is big honkin' hats and light linen overshirts with long sleeves. They also help keep you cool. :)

@floraposte: That is why I wear my SPF-infinity hat. :D I even keep an emergency hat in my car for when it gets unexpectedly sunny or I'm unexpectedly outside. I even have a big floppy felt hat for sunny winter days when I have to be outside.

Hats are surprisingly fun!

@HClay: Heavily tattooed + extremely pale = I buy the absolute highest SPF I can find, smell/feel be damned, cover up, and use a parasol. Yeah, it's that bad.

@floraposte: Yes, what converted me to a sunscreen/sunhat/sunshirt fanatic was seeing how my mother's skin was suddenly 10 years older than she was when she got to be about 40, even though she hadn't tanned or anything. Long-term damage in folks with pale, delicate skin doesn't necessarily require short-term damage from burning or tanning.

I'm pretty motivated not to get skin cancer, but I'm even more motivated not to look old before I'm old, lol. Oh well, at least it's vanity that's helping my health!

@cete-of-badgers: I was going to say! What fun is a margarita shooter? ;)

@Coles_Law: id beg to differ, this was about 100 vs 50 spf, and many people, especially those who burn easily may well be asking, 'is it worth using spf100 instead of 50'

I have gotten a sunburn through clothing before and I'm very pale, so I tend to use in the 30-50 range. But honestly, the only tan I ever expect to get is a computer one... :/ no bikinis for me.

For the ladies (and secure men): Shiseido foundation. Most of them have UVA and UVB protection and use physical rather than chemical blockers. And it's foundation instead of sunscreen, which I HATE on my face.

@Eyebrows McGee (popping ~May 29): My scandinavian father looks like a suitcase after a lifetime of sun exposure so i am a big fan of long sleeves and pants in the summer. And since my scalp burns hats or scarves are a must too. I like a chemical/physical blocker combo since titanium and zinc are effective immediately whereas chemical sunscreens take 20-30 minutes to be effective

@ajlei: Me too! I occasionally do a mystic tan to aviod snow-white syndrome

I carry 50-70 SPF sunscreens in spray and lotion form with me, since I am A) insanely pale redhead and I burn withing 10 minutes and B) live in CO. Altitude sucks sometimes. Needless to say, I go through a LOT of sunscreen, especially since i have to reapply every 30-60 minutes, and twice as often when I'm up in the mountains.

@Etoiles: I'm the other one in pants and long sleeves, hiding under an umbrella. *waves*

@silentluciditi: I agree on the altitude. When I left Denver for Virginia I noticed I could be in the sun about twice as long without broiling. The humidity helps too.

Who would have thought there were so many of the super pale spending the day on the internet? :)

@youbastid: I discovered on a childhood trip to Disney World that I am allergic to PABA. Hello, hives. I am diligent about checking sunscreen for it, and haven't run across any in a decade or so--it appears to no longer be an ingredient in sunscreen, even the cheap stuff.

Whenever I hear about companies competing in the SPF market I cant help but remember this commercial from the old robocop movies. SPF 5000 baby!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCTSCAQzY9k

Better yet, just wear one of the lycra sunshirts, rated at SPF 100. This really limits exposure to the sensitive areas aside from the face.

@HClay:
I know how you feel. It has gotten to the point that I'd rather just avoid direct sunlight and conduct all my summer fun after sunset than have to deal with the sunblock application regiment and my foldable wide-brimmed sunhat. Inevitably I miss spots and get a nice crispy sunburn somewhere. I fear going swimming outdoors anymore. Then there's that feeling like a basted turkey slathered in lotion or spray. Bah. Someone get to work on building a UVA and UVB protective dome to cover the outside.