These 5 tips to help your “normal” clothes protect you from sunburn will answer some questions about sun protection. As well, you will have a better idea of how to live a normal life and stay safe from sunburn.
In a nutshell, 5 tips to help your normal clothes protect you from sunburn will enable you to protect your skin without purchasing a completely new wardrobe! You can do that later when you are ready to do so.
# 1. Why Do I Need To Choose The Best Normal Clothes?
Why do you need to choose the best from your “Normal” clothes in your closet? This applies only if you, like me are still searching for you UPF clothing. With only one or two garments, I still need to know the best normal choice in my closet.
Are you aware that UV radiation is the main cause of most of our skin cancers?
With this in mind, it is easier to understand the need to protect our skin, but most advice leans toward, “buy this!”
Clothing covering your skin is the single best and easiest way to protect your skin. It is no surprise that there are many clothing manufacturing companies that specialize in skin protection clothing. And yes, these can be more expensive ways to cover your skin.
However, there is a trade-off between items from specialty companies and the ability to offer comfortable, lightweight clothing that can block out the sun. Your “normal” clothing may not be as comfortable, or lightweight, but with some careful consideration, you can protect yourself from the sunburn.
Science tells us that UV radiation is the leading cause of most skin cancers.
This makes it important to cover your skin and protect yourself.
However, you should be aware that UV exposure is tricky. This is because it’s not possible to see “UV” with the naked eye. You can see light, but not the UV rays.
You may not be protecting your skin even if the UV light is being stopped.
Sometimes the UV rays may be getting through.
This can allow UV protection shirts to be lightweight and appear too thin like they would allow light to pass through. This can make shopping for sun blocking clothing from your closet cause questions.
Consider this example, your sunglasses that block 100% of UV radiation. You can clearly see through them, yet UV radiation is blocked from passing through at all.
So, with these insights in mind, let’s think about how to find the best normal clothes in your closet for sun protection.
# 2. How To Choose The Best “Normal” Clothes To Protect Your Skin
Normal clothing can provide different levels of UV Ray protection. So lets start with the obvious. Your long-sleeved shirts, long pants, or long skirts will cover the most of your skin, usually are the most protective.
The next important fact for sun protection and normal skin is that darker colors will generally provide your with more protection than light colors.
Then we have the next important fact in this business of normal clothing and sun protection, which is a tightly woven fabric. Think tightly woven like denim. This is a better protecting fabric than loosely a loosely woven fabric. To find out more about sun blocking fabric check out this.
Another important fact to remember is to not reach for that old favorite cotton tee shirt. If your shirt has been washed and worn a lot, the fabric will no longer be smooth and the threads unbroken. The colors will be faded. The UV rays can shine through most of your old favorites.
When choosing a tee shirt, choose a poly-blended cotton, in a darker and deeper color. It may not block the UV rays 100%, but will do a better job than a white or pale color. The newer the better, as the repeated laundry cycles break down the fibers, and they protect less.
A better choice for your fabrics polyester and nylon.
What fabrics can UV rays pass through?
UV rays will be able to pass right through thin, light-colored, and loosely woven fabrics.
For your skins best protection, wear tightly woven, dark-colored, long-sleeved shirts and pants.
Don’t forget you sun hat.
# 3. When To Choose The Best Sun Blocking Clothing From Your “Normal” Clothes Closet
Yes, it is important to remember When you should choose the best from your “Normal” clothes closet. We normally remember the sun protection stuff on vacation or other special event. But everyday? Thats a whole different critter. We tend to overlook small things we can do to protect our skin, everyday.
When you are going to be in the direct sun between the hours of 10 AM and 4 PM, May through mid October, in my part of central Texas. In this part of the world, we tend to drive a good bit. Yes, our vehicles will protect you some from the sun with their treated windshields and windows.
And if your commute is only 10 to work everyday, you will probably be OK. However if your commute is 30 minutes, your are on the edge of dangerous. Daily application of sunscreen is important for protecting your skin. Yes, even though you don’t plan to be out in the direct sun.
There is enough inderect sun that can get to get to your skin and begin the early aging process. Your skin may not get bright red with sunburn, but you will in time have a leathery look that is not that attractive for your facial skin, your arms and hands.
A day at the theme park, with your family. There are so many times that we are exposed and don’t think about it. So every day living is when we usually get damage to our skin. Just remembering to keep a long-sleeve loose-fitting shirt in the car to slip on during your drive to work.
Of course the UPF clothing manufacturers make sun blankets or sun capes that are easy to cover with for driving.
When to wear sun blocking clothing? Everyday?
# 4. Hack For Your “Normal” Clothing
This Hack For Your “Normal” clothing will beef up the protection your closet now offeres.
By adding Rit’s Sun Guard to your laundry routine you will be increasing the protection that your clothing offers. From your pants to your shirts. Anthing washable. More questions answered about Sun Guard
Being able to use products to improve the protection your clothing offers, you can do a better job of protecting your family, as well as yourself from the sun’s dangerous burning rays. Help skin cancer proof your family’s skin.
While Sun Guard is more expensive that regular laundry detergent, one load will treat several shirts and protect your skin for about 20 laundry cycles Certianly less costly than SPF clothing. If your family depends on hand-downs for summer play wear, this will be a great deal for you.
# 5. “Normal” Clothing Works Better To Protect You From The Sun When It Fits Properly
Another duh moment, is when I realized how important the fit of clothing is for protecting from the sun. If your tee shirt is too tight, it will pull the weave of the shirt and make it easier for the sun to reach your skin.
The same is true of a woven fabric shirt or your denim jeans. If they fit too tightly, the fabric is stretched, and will allow the sun to shine through along with the UV rays to cause sunburn to your skin.
Most of these kind of sunburn happen to the back, shoulders and arms. Of course the chest and neck are vernibal to this kind of tight fit burn result.
The trend in our world is tight fitting everything. I understand this is fashion forward and important, but please allow yourself to just get over it. Just as you are not healthier with a tan. You may like the look better, but it may not be the best choice for your skin health.
“You do not decide your future skin health. You decide your daily habits Your habits decide your future.“
You can choose to develop healthy habits for protecting your skin from the sun, and have healthy skin. Or, choose the careless exposures and the sunburn. Then deal with skin cancer and unhealthy skin.
Sami’s Take on 5 Steps To Help Your “Normal” Clothes Protect You From Sunburn
If you live in an area of the world that has lots of sun shiny days, and don’t have a closet full of UPF clothing, learning how to make normal clothes protect your skin is important.
Sometimes it is simply a matter of covering up. Or making sure the garment fits. Using Sun Guard can improve the ability of normal clothing to protect our skin.
Mainly it is building good habits. Like putting sunscreen on your face in the mornings when you brush your teeth. Remembering to cover your skin when you are in the sun. Save the bare look for evenings, after the sun is down.
Helping yourself remember to wear the sun hat with a brim to protect your face and neck, ears, and nose. Your sunshades. It is simply a life of good habits.
Learning to live a sun safe life happens one habit at a time. Will you put these 5 tips to help your normal clothes protect your from sunburn?
Have you started improving your sun safety habits?
Share your progress and help us all be safer in the sun.
Thanks,
Sami