How I Protect My Skin From the Sun

My approach to sun protection is a little different from the standard advice to wear sunscreen on every bit of exposed skin every time you leave the house and always wear sunglasses. While it is important to protect our bodies from harmful rays from the sun, it's really not necessary to use maximum sun protection every minute of the day, every day of the year, on every inch of the Earth.

When I moved here to Florida--the "Sunshine State"--where we have more than 300 days of sunshine each year, from Northern California, where we spent most of the summer wearing sweaters in the fog, I had to learn quick how to not get burned to a crisp.

The way to do it without a lot of sunscreen and sunglasses is to develop a strategy for sun protection that is appropriate to your own needs and the place where you live. I explain in full how to do this in my e-book Debra's Guide to Choosing Natural Sun Protection. Here I'll tell you my own personal strategies.

Clearwater, Florida is at latitude 27N, which is only 27 degrees north of the equator, so that puts us in the zone known as the "subtropics". We are very near sea level.

My skin is what is called "type 3" by dermatologists. I can be out in the sun at least 15 or 20 minutes before my skin gets any color at all.

When I am exposed to the sun:

1. DAILY
On a daily basis, I spend most of my time indoors. My exposure is pretty limited to walking from my house to my car (less than one minute) and from my car to the building once I arrive at my destination.

2. POOL AND BEACH
My husband and I walk in our pool about 45 minutes each day. Occasionally we go walk on the beach or swim in the Gulf of Mexico.

3. GARDEN
I work in my garden for 30-45 minutes at a time.

4. IN THE CAR
Occasional exposure from riding in the car with the sunroof open.

5. FUN
Occasional exposure when out for the day shopping or sightseeing.

Where I live in Florida, the sun is very strong about six months out of the year. I haven't been following the UV Index (though I'm going to start now) but today (1 May 2006) it was 11+--the highest on the scale. In the winter the sun intensity is dramatically less.

My general strategy is: stay out of the midday sun! Whatever I can do at another time of day, I do at another time of day.

My DAILY strategy is to not be concerned about the brief exposures I have walking from my car to a building.

My POOL AND BEACH strategy is to go in the pool and go to the beach in the evening. My husband and I general end our work days around 5:00 or 6:00 and go for a nice walk in the pool together before dinner. In the summertime, we often go down to the Gulf of Mexico (a 10-minute drive) after dinner and walk along the beach or play in the wate (in the summer, the water is 97 degrees). The sun is very low in the sky, there's a nice breeze off the water, and we watch the sunset.

My GARDEN strategy is to work in the garden in the early morning or evening--usually the morning. It's the nicest time of day and gardening is a good thing to do before I get going with my work for the day.

My IN THE CAR strategy is to close the sunroof when the sun is directly overhead. (I do wear sunglasses in the car occasionally for glare or if I'm driving directly into the sunrise or sunset.)

My FUN strategy is to do indoor activities, such as go to a museum or shop at a mall, during the middle part of the day, and walk around outside in the morning and evening. If I really need to be outdoors in the sun at midday, I wear a visor or a hat to protect my eyes and face. I do this so infrequently, I'm not worried about covering up my arms or legs.

That's my total strategy! No sunscreen, no protective clothing, no sunglasses--and I haven't had a single sunburn since I moved to Florida.

Read Debra's Guide to Choosing Natural Sun Protection.