Does your Sunscreen Inhibit Vitamin D Production?

12 April 2019 @ 12:00am

Does your Sunscreen Inhibit Vitamin D Production?

By Mat Collett, Co-founder & CEO of Solar D

 

Since the inception of sunscreen in 1938 by Franz Grieter and the invention of water-resistant sunscreen in 1977, sunscreen technology hasn’t really changed. Traditional sunscreens screen out almost all the ultra violet (UV) light. However, recent studies have shown that not all UV light is equal. In fact, some of the sun’s UV light can be beneficial for our health.

Solar D has developed and patented the first Vitamin D Promoting SPF Technology by allowing in some of the UVB light that is essential for vitamin D production while still protecting us from burning, aging and melanoma.

How Does SPF Work?

SPF was created to screen out as much of the UV spectrum (UVA & UVB) as possible to gain its Sun Protection Factor (SPF) and protect our bodies from sun burn.

This SPF measurement is the amount of time it would usually take to burn multiplied by the SPF number. Therefore, no matter the colour of your skin, an SPF50 will protect your skin for sunburn for 50 times longer than if you hadn’t applied any sunscreen at all.

A current broad spectrum SPF30 will screen out up to 97% of the UVA & UVB light and an SPF50 will screen out up to 99% of the UV light, including the UVB light our bodies use to make vitamin D. This is therefore reducing our bodies ability to produce vitamin D by up t 99%.

What is the difference between UVA and UVB light?

UV light from the sun is made up of 3 different types: UVA, UVB & UVC.

UVA has the longest wavelength and therefore most deeply penetrates our skin and is attributed mainly to the development of melanoma as a result of deeper skin penetration. UVA light accounts for approximately 95% of all the UV light that reaches the Earth’s surface.

UVB light is the second shortest light by wavelength and does not penetrate beyond the superficial layers of our skin[1]. UVB light represents just 5% of the sun’s light that reaches the Earth’s surface as it doesn’t reach our skin in winter, or before 10am and after 3pm in Summer and doesn’t get through clouds, clothing nor glass. However, it is a crucial element in our body’s production of vitamin D.

UVC light is the shortest and weakest light and doesn’t get through our atmosphere and therefore doesn’t reach our skin.

Unlike many other vitamins, we cannot obtain the required vitamin D levels via oral consumption[2]. Whilst we don’t want to sacrifice our skin, we do need to spend time in the sun so that our bodies can absorb this UVB light and create vitamin D.

Solar D’s unique, patented vitamin D promoting SPF technology lets through more of the UVB light that our bodies need to produce Vitamin D, whilst still protecting our skin with broad spectrum SPF. This gives us the best of both worlds where we get to protect our skin and absorb the valuable UVB light for vitamin D production.

 

Solar D’s equity crowdfunding offer is now open via the OnMarket platform. Solar D are raising up to $2 million with a minimum bid size of $500.

Invest in Solar D now at OnMarket to own a piece of the SPF technology revolution.

 

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