One of the main reasons people move to Los Angeles is that big shiny thing in the sky. Sorry, we don't have that in England. What's it called again? Oh yeah, that's right, the sun! And it certainly feels good on your skin, but I bet like me, you're curious to know how that stuff we slop on our skin — sunscreen — actually works? 

Here are 5 things to know about sunscreen.

  1. A Swiss chemistry student called Franz Greiter got roasted by the sun while climbing Mount Piz Buin in 1938 in Switzerland, so he created a cream with the same name as the rock on which he sizzled. Years later, Benjamin Green also came up with an oily cream to protect his fellow servicemen in the sun during WWII, which was eventually called Coppertone.
  2. What you may not think about is that the sun is always shining, even when it's behind the clouds. The suns' rays radiate down and out to us. The sun is made up of lots of different kinds of light, the light you can see and the light you can't: infrared and ultraviolet, or UV, of which two main types to mention: UVB and UVA. Imagine them as two different types of waves. UVB are shorter waves that move faster and hit your unprotected skin hard, leading to burning. Let's say that's the B in UVB! UVA has slightly slower-moving and longer waves that can penetrate deeper into your skin, creating more permanent damage. UVA is always present (use the A to remember that!). It all comes down to how much time your skin spends exposed and unprotected in the sun.
  3. There are two types of sunscreen. Physical or mineral sunscreen contains things such as titanium dioxide, which has a white pigment that reflects, blocks and scatters the incoming rays from the sun. And zinc oxide too, which protects and blocks both UVA and UVB rays. Chemical sunscreen contains organic compounds that, instead of reflecting the rays back, form a chemical reaction, absorb them, and then turn the rays into heat, which is then released by the skin and the body. But it's not effective immediately, which is why we're told to put the stuff on several minutes before we even step outside. 
  4. But what about SPF: The sun protection factor? This number is often a bit confusing because what it actually means is how much longer it takes for UVB, the burning rays, to redden your skin compared to exposure without sunscreen. So an SPF of 15 means it will take around 15 times longer for your skin to go red. But of course, this depends on your skin tone or type. The lighter the skin, the easier the burn, so the higher the SPF — say 30 to 50 for better protection with a lower SPF for skin that takes longer to burn. 
  5. The best combination of sunscreen? Scientists say one that blocks and absorbs both UVA and UVB rays with a high SPF. And make sure you reapply sunscreen every few hours or as often as possible. That way you'll have a much happier summer! 

But one thing is for sure in the future, the more that we protect our skin properly and effectively from damage by the sun, the more likely we are to love living in our skin for many more years to come!