Last Friday, April 16, 2010, Kikay Corner set off with 11 other beauty bloggers to Anvaya Cove Beach and Nature Club for the Neutrogena Healthy Summer Skin Bloggers Event. It cannot be more fitting to talk about healthy skin in a place where people flock to during the summer season – the beach!
I learned a bunch during the event. One learning that I was able to bring home with me is the importance of seeing a PDS accredited dermatologist. Now, I was never a fan of any of those one stop beauty shops that offer facials and all the other beauty treatments. I never had a major skin issue all my life. But that is not so for many of the girls I know and the truth of the matter is, those one stop beauty shops that claim to make you look prettier entice a whole bunch of ladies out there. From the pre-teeners to adults. And it is not surprising that people flock these establishments. They offer treatments with lower tags attached to them as opposed to having to go to a legitimate PDS accredited dermatologist that’s can cost a little pricier.
Now summer is not exactly my favorite season. Methinks living in a tropical country just about gives us all the heat that we can get that’s enough to last us all year long. So the extra heat of the summer just about drains me out sometimes. But that’s the bummer in me. I love nature tripping and that just about balances me out somehow. My fear of the sun is what exactly makes me get ready for the summer heat whenever we hit the beach. Both my boys love the beach and there’s no way I’m going to sulk at home so I just enjoy the vacay whenever we go. We were in Boracay last year, so we’ll probably just go drive somewhere in Batangas soon for our next beach getaway.
I always thought I have been generously applying sunblock as I should until this Healthy Summer Skin Event. Dr. LovernaSuratos, Chairman, Public Relations and External Affairs Committee, Philippine Dermatological Society (PDS) talked about the Skin Safety Campaign and later shared with us the “teaspoon rule.” I was in for a shock, to say the least. The teaspoon rule says that you so liberally apply sunblock to your whole body with a teaspoon full of sunblock to each of your limb. This is what you should do to effectively sunscreen your skin from the harmful rays of the sun. It took a while before it finally sunk in as Dra. Loverne Suratos demonstrated on Jaime how a teaspoon full of sunblock lotion should look on your skin. It literally has to look like a thick coat on top of your skin. After application, we have to wait for 40 minutes for the sunscreen to get absorbed by the skin before we can go under the sun or swim. Reapplication of sunblock should be every 2 hours for as long as you are under the sun.
Why should we at all try to cover ourselves up from the sun anyway? Two things: premature skin aging and skin cancer. I think those two are enough reasons for us to make sure we take care of our bodies as we Slip on those swimwears, Slop on a liberal (a teaspoon a limb) amount of sunblock on our bodies and Slap on a hat that’s wide enough to cover our faces from the rays of the sun. Slip, Slop and Slap totally makes sense!
Dra. Loverna Suratos also emphasized the importance of sticking to reputable brands for this very purpose. While it is easy for us to experiment on newer brands that are relatively new, more established ones have already put in so much on research and development of their products that make their products reliable than the rather generic ones. I have to agree with her on this.
Dr. Suratos also discussed that while there is increasing awareness for the need to use sun screens, many consumers are still not aware of the need to protect themselves from both UVA and UVB rays. She highlighted, “Not all sunscreens are created equal. Apart from looking for one with a high SPF rating, it is important to remember that it should also offer protection from UVA rays that may lead to skin cancer and melanoma. The Protection Factor UVA (PFA) will indicate the degree of UVA protection. The higher the protection grade of UVA (PA), the more protection from UVA rays you will get.”
Women need not worry though, as Neutrogena offers superior sun protection from both UVB and UVA rays with its Ultra Sheer product line. The Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch Sunblock SPF 50+ PA+++ and the Ultra Sheer Complete UV Waterlight Lotion SPF 50+ PA+++ contain Neutrogena’s patented Helioplex technology, a breakthrough sun protection technology that delivers broad-spectrum and photo-stable UV protection that not only blocks UVB burning rays, but also helps stop aging- and cancer-causing UVA rays from penetrating the layers of the skin.
What is Helioplex anyway? Here’s a short video clip that explains what it is and why it is the next generation stabilized sun protection.
“Other sunblocks also contain UVA protection, but they eventually break down after constant sun exposure. The patented Helioplex technology found only in Neutrogena provides long-lasting UVA protection that won’t break down easily,” explained Gabriel Roxas, Neutrogena brand manager.
“With Neutrogena’s Ultra Sheer line, women can have maximum fun under the summer sun, without having to worry about sunburn or premature skin aging. Our Helioplex and Dry Touch Technologies provide women with superior sun protection, without the sticky or greasy feeling that usually comes when applying sunblocks,” reiterated Roxas. “Neutrogena remains fully committed to constantly provide Filipinas with effective, technologically advanced products to help them possess healthy, beautiful skin.”
The Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch Sunblock SPF 50+ PA+++ and Ultra Sheer Complete UV Waterlight Lotion SPF 50+ PA+++ are available in leading department stores and supermarkets nationwide, with a suggested retail price of Php 509.25 and Php 460.00, respectively.