Our newest addition, PRIORI Coffeeberry Perfecting Minerals, is marketed as “sun protection” — rather than “mineral foundation” — acceptable not only for women, but for men and children as well.  And recently, a couple of clients have shown us the new powder sunscreen they’re using, which got us thinking about the idea of foundation versus sunscreen. We want to hear from our readers:  Would YOU put mineral powder on your toddler?  Teenage son?  Husband?  Here’s my personal investigation into the matter:

On a sunny weekend day, my family was going to walk the Los Gatos Creek Trail, a perfect opportunity to use minerals (instead of sunscreen) on my five-year-old daughter, Shannon.  As I prepped her face with a little moisture (Epicuren’s CXc, a Vitamin C serum), I wondered if I had stumbled into Pageant Mom territory.  What was next?  Spray tan for my Kindergartner?  She giggled as the brush tickled her face, and I realized that, unlike creamy sunscreen, the mineral powder won’t get in her eyes (from clumsy application or sweating).  Plus one for mineral powder!  I inspected the results and was pleased that the color was a perfect match and the powder was totally undetectable.  Two points!  By the end of the day, I no longer felt like a morally impaired makeup artist forcing cosmetics upon my family; I felt good about Shannon having breathable, chemical- and paraben-free sun protection with antioxidant protection to boot.  Plus, if you can share your mineral powder with other family members, then it’s cost effective, too.  Mineral powder for kids is definitely a winner in my book!

But I wasn’t done yet:  what about men?  Surprisingly, my SO NOT metro-sexual husband says he would wear mineral powder, but not “the liquid stuff” (a.k.a. liquid foundation).  Mineral powder, one – traditional sunscreen, zip.  While he says he would wear it, he is under the assumption that I, his wife and professional makeup artist, will be applying it for him.  Every day.  Sorry, buddy, not very practical.  And we have a tie.  Besides, mineral powder tends to have a radiance that emulates a youthful glow, something that women love but may look unnatural on a rugged, five o’clock shadow kinda guy.  If you use the Finishing Touch Powder over the mineral powder, it will yield a matte finish, but I just can’t imagine my husband knowing what to do with two powders and two brushes.   I think traditional sunscreen for men is the winner here.  Remember to look for a chemical-free, mineral sunscreen with zinc and titanium dioxide.

We’d love to know what your guy thinks about wearing mineral powder, or if you’d use it on your little tikes… leave us a comment!

At any rate, I’m here to tell you that yes, I agree that we all need a little sun every day, but most of us can get our requirement for Vitamin D from the sun in about 10 minutes but after that, that sunshine is aging us, inside and out. It gets more serious … although it’s my business to be concerned about the beauty of the skin, I’m much more concerned about the greater damage that can be caused by the sun: damage to our long-term health.

On the lighter side, excessive sun sets off a chain of free radical reactions that derails the immune system, leaving us with a trail of symptoms such as fatigue, dehydration, and damaged (fried) hair and skin which leaves us tired, cranky, and looking a little thrashed. Notice how your hair gets dry and frizzy after a day in the sun? (Not to mention the irritating sunburn.) There is new evidence to suggest that inadequate amounts of Omegas in our diet can reduce our natural resistance to the sun. If your immune system is already taxed, you are likely to become burned more easily.

On the darker side of things, excessive sun can trigger aggressive skin cancers, even in the very young. Skin cancer is the #1 cause of death in women between the ages of 22 and 29. One theory is that the packaging for cosmetic products containing SPF has decreased the sales of dedicated sunscreen products to this age group. According to educators at SkinCeuticals, it would take 2 tablespoons (ok, for the non-culinary inclined, that’s a shot glass full!) of liquid make-up or a moisturizer containing SPF to achieve the protection level stated on the label. That’s 2 tablespoons applied to the neck and face, which is not practical (or possible).

One more thing on combination products … moisturizer molecules need to be smaller to penetrate and be of service. Sunscreen molecules are large. Therefore, it stands to reason that the moisturizer, which represents the costly part of the product, is not able to adequately penetrate the skin and do its job (thereby wasted). It’s generally true that combination products are almost always made of chemical sunscreens (which most likely contain one or more of a scary list of ingredients known to cause damage to DNA) to neutralize UV. These chemicals must penetrate the skin to neutralize UV, which increases redness and heat in the skin, worsening those enlarged red vessels. On the other hand, physical sunscreens, which are made of minerals (zinc and titanium dioxide) lay on top of the skin, and reflect UV and keep damaging heat from penetrating. For these reasons, I almost always recommend a physical (non-chemical) sunscreen, which is non-toxic and keeps harmful chemicals and heat from penetrating the outer layer of the skin.

Sun protection for healthy skin:

1. Cleanse your skin.
2. Moisturize your skin.
3. Apply sunscreen daily.

Sun protection for beautiful** skin:

1. Cleanse your skin with an anti-aging cleanser.
2. Apply an anti-oxidant serum.
3. Apply a moisturizer for your skin type.
4. Apply a physical sunscreen made of zinc oxide or titanium.

**Some of my readers just want healthy skin and don’t really care about beautiful skin, but for those of you who insist on seeing changes in your skin, you must come in to the salon and see our current line-up of cosmoceuticals, those amazing science-based products that can make your skin smoother and more radiant.

I am thrilled with the results that I’ve seen among my clients using PRIORI’S AHA line. It’s the perfect line if you want to correct ill-behaved skin, seriously hydrate your skin, remove fine lines, or smooth out the texture of your skin. Seriously, I’ve had several clients report that even their husbands noticed the new glow in their skin.

So get out there and enjoy the summer. Ride your bike. Play volleyball on the beach. Work in the garden. Drink wine on the deck with your friends. But don’t forget, it’s very cool to wear sunscreen.

Chrysann