COVER UP, LADIES
Clearly, we aren’t talking about clothes. Frankly, wear what you like. Wander around the house in your pants and a bra top. Go naked, if you will. No. This is about the subject of sunscreen. It ought to be worn all year round, but now that the sun has got his actual hat on, ensure your face at least is protected.
‘As you age, skin is more sensitive to sunlight,’ explains aesthetic expert Dr Mervyn Patterson at Woodford Medical. ‘Not only is it more likely to develop permanent pigmentation, but if you spent years sunbathing with inadequate protection, your melanocytes, or tanning cells, are pre-programmed to activate swiftly.’
This means that pigmentation pops out immediately. You might have noticed that just one day of sun exposure in the summer can mean a face full of pigmentation (not freckles, those are lovely), but blotches and splotches of discolouration. Over winter this fades but often emerges, like the green shoots of spring, around this time of year.
Don’t forget that collagen, which gives skin elasticity and plumpness, declines from our twenties onwards. After menopause, levels can plummet by as much as thirty per cent over the following five years – meaning we’re more prone to sagging and wrinkling.
Midlife faces might already be paying the price for the excesses of youth. If you were, for example, a fan of the baby oil and foil method of tanning back in the early 1980s, it’s likely to be revealing itself! Don’t forget that everything wrinkles – arms, ankles and even toes.
You might be totally indifferent to the ageing process – and totally your choice – but don’t forget that skin cancer tends to develop on exposed areas. Cover upat all times.
THREE TOP PRODUCTS
Roche Posay Anthelios Hydrating Tinted Cream, SPF50, £17.50, laroche-posay.co.uk La Roche Posay nails it every time. This gives super-high protection for dry to very dry skin.
Heliocare Pigment Solution Fluid, £28.04, heliocare.co.uk A silky fine slightly tinted fluid which smooths onto skin and provides protection from pigmentation. Sweat and water-resistant.
Epionce Daily Shield Tinted Lotion, SPF 50, £47.50, beauty-product-online.co.uk A joy to use – a tinted chemical-free and anti-pollution cream which gives effective coverage, with no need for any other make-up.
