26/04/2022
When should you use powdered sunscreen?
"In theory, powdered sunscreens would be great if thoroughly applied to the entire face in a thicker coat," says Anna Guanche, a California-based board-certified dermatologist. But since no one has the time (or money) to apply half a jar of powder to their faces halfway through a beach day, she recommends saving SPF powder for touch-ups.
"Apply a mixed chemical and physical sunscreen to the skin first thing in the A.M.," says Guanche, "then touch up with the powder sunscreen throughout the day on the most sunburn-prone areas: midface, nasal bridge, and upper forehead."
What is powdered sunscreen?
I've always pictured the inventor of sunscreen products to be a scientist with a great spray tan and huge sunglasses,
Cream and spray sunscreens are formulated as liquid to "ensure maximum dispersion of the titanium dioxide and provide an even coating of sunscreen agents on the skin," Ko says. There's no "special formulation" that turns sun-protective ingredients into powders because they exist that way in the first place. Ingredient-wise, you're getting the same goods in a tin of powder that you are in a spray can.
