Attitudes toward sunlight have changed over the years.  At the turn of the 20th century the “pale look” was prized and cultivated.  The tanned look equated to laborers who worked outdoors. 

In the 1930’s a gradual change became cataclysmic when French fashion guru Coco Chanel returned from a foreign holiday sporting a deep tan.  Overnight, the whole Caucasian population desired the new fashion, tanned skin that has persisted to this day.

Studies of the sun and its affects have identified significant damage to the skin including cancerous melanomas.  The best offense is a good defense, starting with use of sunscreens whenever in the sun.

The sun offers warmth, natural vitamin synthesis, and uplifts the soul but can pose dangers with unprotected exposure.

Recent studies have yielded strong evidence that certain vitamins and anti-oxidants can protect body cells from damage and provide the proper environment for the correction of damage.  Caribe Baie incorporates many of these helpful ingredients.

How the Sun Causes Damage

Sun damage is caused by ultraviolet radiation, commonly called UV damage.  Ultraviolet light is divided into three major wavelengths: 

• UVA Radiation – Considered the “Aging Ray,” it makes up 95% of UV light and is responsible for 15% of sunburns.  It causes damage to the cellular proteins, lipids and carbohydrates.  It is responsible for the visual wrinkling and aging of the skin and has been linked to 67% of malignant melanoma (mole cancer).  Unlike UVB, UVA light can penetrate glass (including car windows).  Sunscreen ingredients to protect against UVA radiation are recent and, as a result, not all sunscreens protect against UVA (Caribe Baie provides broad spectrum coverage against both UVB and UVA radiations in all SPF products rated 8 or higher).

 

• UVB Radiation – Considered the “Burning Ray,” it makes up 4-5% of UV light but is responsible for 85% of sunburns and is responsible for the initiation of certain cancers.  It significantly decreases anti-oxidants in the skin, impairing the skin’s ability to protect itself against the sun.  Although less reaches the Earth it is 1,000 times stronger than UVA.  On a good note it is responsible for the photo protective pigment known as melanin which gives our skin the suntanned appearance and also for the syntheses of Vitamin D in the skin.  All sunscreens protect against UVB radiation.

 

• UVC Radiation – At present, the ozone layer blocks this from reaching earth.

Sun Protection Factor (SPF)

The sun protection factor is a measure of the ability of a sunscreen to protect against erythema (sunburn).  The SPF number defines how long you can stay in the sun before getting burnt.  If it normally takes you 20 minutes before a burn, an SPF 15 product will let you stay 15 times longer in the sun (20 min. x 15 SPF = 300 min/ 5 hours).  Most dermatologists agree that SPF’s higher than 30 are just marketing tools.  There are no SPF ratings for UVA rays, but all Caribe Baie products rated SPF 8 or higher for UVB also protect against UVA.

• SPF 2 protects from 50% of UVB light
• SPF 8 protects from 87.5% of UVB light
• SPF 15 protects from 93.3% of UVB light.
• SPF 30 protects from 96.7% of UVB light.