NOT ALL SUNSCREENS ARE CREATED EQUAL
Dedicated anglers over the course of their lives will spend weeks, months, or years under the suns rays trying to catch a bite. While the older generation was mostly unaware or misinformed for much of their angling lives about the damages sun exposure can cause. Years later many are having cases of skin cancer on their exposed extremities. The amount of skin cancer cases year by year is growing and spending countless hours under the sun without proper protection increases your risks significantly. Luckily modern medicine and science now has proper information and statistics to help us anglers enjoy fishing while still being protected from the suns harmful UVA & UVB rays.
Physical vs Chemical Sunscreens
A physical sunscreen will sit atop the skin and usually consist of natural mineral ingredients such at titanium dioxide or zinc oxide. Physical sunscreens are naturally broad spectrum which means they protect against UVB and UVA rays. They are less likely to clog pores on the skin and are great for those with heat activated skin conditions. Physical sunscreens typically aren’t good for physical activities which may require you to get wet or sweat.
Chemical Sunscreens typically contain carbon based compounds such as oxybenzone, octinaoxte, octisalate, and avodenzone. These chemicals will change the suns rays into heat which in turn will help release the heat from the skin. Chemical sunscreens can be applied much easier and require less to cover the skin. The problems with chemical sunscreen is that it needs to be reapplied frequently as it used up being in direct sunlight.
SPF labels can often be deceiving. Just because a sunscreen has a higher SPF does not mean that its preventative properties are better for your skin. A misconception often times is that 60spf sunscreen is far more protective than 30spf. The truth is that there is only a small increase in sun ray reflection. Soon we may see the FDA ban sunscreens which claim more than SPF 50 as there is no true evidence that proves more protection.
