Beyond Sunscreen: Additional Tips For Protecting Your Hair From The Sun?

Dear Whisperers,

I hope you are well. As I comeback every week with something to learn, to take back, to share and of-course our gossips that remains very much a whisper, this week however what I’ve to share may not remain a whisper. You see, it needs to be known, to be spoken about. It has the capacity to cause very long term effects on you. Hence, I may have to write a little more in detail, so as to not miss out much that I’ve in mind and hope that you will only share this for others to know. Let’s start?…..

Let’s talk about the importance of sunscreen, while there’s no questioning the importance of sunscreen in your anti-aging regimen, not to mention overall skin health, the same holds true for your hair and scalp.

UV rays can seriously dry out and weaken your strands, especially if your hair is already in a drier state or leans toward it. To add to it, prolonged sun exposure degrades the protein structure of hair, often resulting in low elasticity, breakage, split ends and lack of shine. Your hair though, for some time can act as a natural barrier against the sun, but SPF is still necessary.

So, do you need to put sunscreen on your scalp?In short, yes. Your scalp — though it may be covered by your hair — and your hair itself; are both at risk for UVA and UVB damage.

Our scalp is skin, and it can get damaged by the sun just like the skin on our face, arms and legs. Short term, this can cause problems like redness, soreness and subsequent peeling – but repeated sun exposure and repeated sunburn can lead to skin cancer on our scalps.

The next point remains- Will sunscreen damage your hair?
No, it will not damage your hair. Some formulas may be a little heavy and greasy for your liking but it’s about finding the right formula for you, just like you do for your shampoo and conditioner. You can buy hair specific SPF’s in the form of nourishing mists, to frizz-fighting creams, and certain types of oils which are generally a lot lighter than creams.

Since we’ve established how important sunscreen is for your scalp and hair, the next question could be- but where do I apply scalp spf?
I will tell you how or rather where I always apply it, on to my hairline and parting. Yes, that does the trick.

My line of advice to you before I head out, is to get the best product, to look for a scalp sunscreen where the SPF formula is with PA+++ that protects you from the harmful UVA rays of the sun, while the SPF should always be 30+, which is known to prevent tanning by blocking the UVB rays.

Now that I’ve saved you from the sun’s glare, you can save a friend or foe by sharing this with them too.

Stay young, stay beautiful, and bright. Forever!

Until Next Time,
Miss Smarty Pens.