If you are planning a spring break getaway to a sunny destination, you are probably getting together your skin care products and wondering what to do with half-empty sunscreen bottles from last year. Sunscreens are designed to remain stable and at original strength for up to three years. Therefore, you can use sun block left over from last summer.  Sunscreen is required by the FDA to include an expiration date. Discard sunscreen that is past the expiration date or is more than 3 years old.

However, a bottle of sunscreen should not last very long. It should be applied liberally and frequently to provide the best protection possible from the sun’s harmful rays. A liberal application is 1 ounce (30 milliliters) — the amount in a shot glass — to cover all exposed parts of the body. If you have a 4-ounce (118-milliliter) bottle, you’ll use about one-fourth of it for one application. Be sure to rub the sunscreen in well.

My SPF-40 Lotion Mist Sun Block contains clear Zinc Oxide and is the only high SPF protection in a spray-lotion form. It’s broad spectrum protects skin against UVA and UVB exposure and helps prevent sun induced damage. It also contains antioxidants to help repair and rejuvenate skin.

We all know that Vitamin C is an important daily requirement for basic nutrition, and recent research shows that it is an effective component of sunscreen. A study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology looked at the photoprotective effect of chemicals found in Vitamin C and found that when applied to skin and exposed to UV rays the Vitamin C-based solution was very effective, particularly at reducing mutations associated with skin cancer.

This is a promising breakthrough. My products are rich in Vitamin C and other antioxidants because of their healing and regenerative properties. More research into finding stable forms of Vitamin C for application on skin will undoubtedly follow this research finding.

SPF is a measure of how long a person can stay in the sun without burning. An SPF 30 means thirty times longer than if you went out with nothing on. It’s important to keep in mind that all skin is different. A woman with very pale skin, of Irish heritage, for example, may last only a minute or two before her bare skin turns pink, so an SPF 30 would give her 30 minutes before she needed to reapply.

UVA and UVB: SPF measures a product’s ability to block UVB (burning) rays. A product’s power to shield against UVA (aging) rays is not currently labeled. UVA rays break down collagen and elastin fibers supporting skin. It doesn’t matter what your nationality is, if you don’t want wrinkles you need to guard against UVA light.

Sunscreen vs sunblock: Sunblocks are physical barriers; they sit on top of skin and reflect the rays off of it. The SPF-40 Lotion Mist Sunblock is a high power, lightweight mist that helps protect skin from harmful UVA/UVB rays. The mist helps prevent sun induced damage, as well as soothes the skin with aloe to reduce inflammation. Sunscreens are chemical UVA shields. They sink into tissue and when light hits them, they create a reaction that neutralizes the radiation. The Sunless Tanning Bronzer is a safe tanner with SPF-15 which offers a beautiful and natural-looking tan all year round. Not only does this bronzer give you amazing radiance, it is also rich in antioxidants and vitamins to leave your skin smooth and supple.