How to take care of your skin during a heatwave – and avoid getting burnt

Take a quick glance around your office and you’ll easily spot the telltale signs of the heatwave Britain is currently basking in; extra freckles, t-shirt tans and reddy brown shoulders. Harmless hangovers from a few sunny days, right?

Um, wrong. “While a small percentage of the population are dutifully applying sun cream every time they head out in the sun, the vast majority of the UK are taking every opportunity to bake themselves, entirely oblivious to the damage they're inflicting upon their skin,” says consultant dermatologist Dr Nick Lowe, a professor of dermatology at UCLA in California. “Mostly because they believe it won’t really do them any harm.”

What are the dangers of intermittent tanning?

Prof Lowe says: “Firstly, unlike when they're on holiday, people don't think they need sun cream in the UK sun, but if you have skin type 1 like me [see guide below], your skin will begin to burn after just ten minutes of unprotected exposure. 

“They see some redness that turns to brown and think nothing of it, but the effects are far reaching. Unprotected sun exposure can greatly increase your risk of skin cancer. Especially if you’re in the high risk category. For example, if you’ve had a previous skin cancer, a strong family history, or lots of moles and freckles and fair skin.”

Studies show that skin cancer risk is more closely linked with intermittent exposure to high-intensity sunlight (in other words, sitting in a sunny pub garden on a hot weekend), than to chronic sunlight exposure (e.g. having an outdoor occupation or living somewhere permanently sunny).

Melanoma and non-melanoma

There are two types of skin cancer – melanoma and non-melanoma. With non melanoma, there is basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma. Basal cell (which accounts for 75 per cent of skin cancers) won’t spread and won’t kill you – but left untreated it will get bigger and form an ulcer on the skin. Squamous cells rarely, but still can, spread so they also need to be removed. Lastly, there’s melanoma. If it’s caught early there’s very good survival rate. If not, it can quickly spread to other organs and survival rates then drop to 15-20 per cent.

Professor Nick Lowe

Professor Lowe says the time from sunburn to skin cancer is usually 15-20 years and a recent study found melanoma is the second most common cancer in 15 to 34-year-olds.

Another study has found the number of skin cancer cases is expected to rise by more than 40 per cent to around 514,000 new cases per year in 2035, with a greater increase in men than women (women tend to be better at applying sun cream). 

“However, melanoma affects anybody of any age, sex or skin type," says Professor Lowe. "While fair skinned, fair eyed people are more likely to burn and develop skin cancer, even very dark brown and black skinned people can too.

“Then of course, there’s skin ageing which is accelerated by unprotected sun exposure. Like skin cancer, you may not see it for 10 or 15 years after exposure. And it’s not just premature wrinkling you have to look forward to, but also sagging skin, uneven skin tone and patchy pigmentation."

So how can you protect yourself? "Apply sunscreen early (30 minutes before heading outside) and often (every two hours) with an SPF of at least 30, but ideally higher," says Professor Lowe.

"Don’t forget those easily forgettable areas like bald patches, hair partings, the backs of your hands and your chest. Sit in the shade often, avoid the midday sun, and cover up with hats and UV protective clothing as much as possible. A finely woven hat with a four-inch brim reduces UV exposure to your head and neck by 70 per cent. Your eyes aren’t immune from sun damage either - especially pale blue ones - so always wear sunglasses." 

What’s your skin type?

Skin Type 1: Red, fair hair. Green or blue eyes, pale skin with freckles. Burns very easily and never tans.

Skin Type 2: Blonde, darker blondes, brown or red hair. Green, blue, grey and hazel eyes. Pale skin. Burns easily, rarely tans.

Skin Type 3: Brown or dark blonde hair. Brown, blue, hazel, green, grey eye colour. Neutral skin colour. Skin tans gradually, sometimes burns.

Skin Type 4: Brown or blonde hair. Hazel or brown eyes. Skin tans easily and rarely burns.

Skin Type 5: Dark brown to black hair. Brown eyes. Darker complexion, which never burns tans easily and deeply.

Skin Type 6: Black hair, dark brown eyes. Dark skin tone.