Get Your Body Summer-Ready With These Skincare Tips

To make the most out of your summer this year, you'll want to feel and look your best. Unfortunately, many people suffer from oily and shiny skin, dry skin, dull and straw-like hair each summer, and sunburn is always a risk too. If you're determined to take the best care of your skin you can this year, you'll need to prepare in advance. Here are some tips that will keep you looking awesome!

Sunscreen And Beyond

The American Academy of Dermatology estimates that a whopping three million cases of skin cancer a year could be prevented by avoiding sun exposure. While there is no doubt that we're subjected to the sun's damaging rays year-round, and even through windows while we're indoors, 80 percent of sun damage we face is still "earned" during the hotter months. This is the season to be extra careful!

You should ideally apply sunscreen 15 to 30 minutes before going out in the sun. Use plenty, to cover your whole face and all sun-exposed areas of the body, well, and don't forget to reapply your sunscreen every two hours if you are actually directly in the sun. It's great that many moisturizers and even BB creams now have an SPF, but remember that this is "extra" and not something anyone should ever solely rely on: no sunscreen lasts through the day!

Contrary to popular belief, using an SPF of 15 will typically suffice: this successfully blocks 93 percent of the rays that have the potential to give you sunburn, while SPF 30, for instance deflects 97 percent of these rays — though the double number may give you the impression that it would be much more effective.

More important than the sun protection factor you choose is that you opt for a broad-spectrum sunscreen that protects both against UVA and UVB rays. To achieve this, you'll need a sunscreen that contains oxybenzone, cinnamates , sulisobenzone, salicylates, titanium oxide, avobenzone, or zinc oxide. Due to (semi-warranted) concerns over the safety of some of these ingredients, highly safety-conscious people tend to prefer zinc-oxide based sunscreens. Note: though zinc oxide used to give people a white hue that wasn't particularly attractive, more modern formulations don't come with this "side effect".

READ Protect Your Skin - National Healthy Skin Month

Whether you'll be swimming or not, you'll benefit from a waterproof sunscreen. Summer temperatures will have you sweating, after all, and you don't want to miss out on that protection by having it flushed away! Don't neglect your lips, which are also prone to skin cancer, either, and purchase a lip balm with an SPF.

More Summer Skincare Tips

Caring For Your Skin During Summer

Your skin changes with the seasons, that much is for sure. How, exactly, varies from person to person. Most people will find that their skin is oilier in summer, a result of increased air humidity sending your sebaceous glands into overdrive. A significant sub-group of people experiences the exact opposite, ending up with dry skin, however. Dry summer skin can be caused by a variety of factors, ranging from showering more often, being exposed to chlorine in swimming pools, and spending a lot of time in air-conditioned environments to clogged pores blocking the sweat glands and exfoliating too much to compensate for previously oily skin.

If your skin is oily, keep your eyes open for lighter oil-free moisturizers that won't clog your pores, and exfoliate with alpha hydroxy acid based products twice a week. You will want to choose BB creams or mattifying moisturizers, and loose powder will, along with blotting sheets, become your best friend if you don't think shining and dripping skin is very glamorous.

Those suffering from dry skin should, on the other hand, use a more nourishing moisturizer. While not neglecting exfoliation, which gets rid of the old skin cells that will give you a flaky look if you leave them there, you should certainly not overdo it either. Over-exfoliated skin removes the barrier that protects your skin from the elements, including the sun. Watch out! If you have dry skin during the summer, following conventional wisdom by applying mattifying foundations will leave you looking dull and artificial. Liquid full-coverage moisturizers will be your friend.

Summer Hair Care

Both the sun and the inevitable swimming will dry your hair out during the hotter months, leaving it looking dull and frizzy if you're not careful. What can you do to keep your hair looking luscious in summer?

• Did you know that hair-care products with UV protection are available? If you didn't, you do now. Look for them!
• Have a shower to wet your hair prior to swimming in chlorinated water to prevent the chlorine from saturating your hair. This will prevent drying to some extent, but if your locks are still looking a little worse for wear, specialized shampoos and conditioners designed to strip chlorine from your hair also exist. If you don't want to get those, at least make sure that you condition your hair every time you wash it, because shampoo-only washes leave your hair wide open to chlorine damage.
• Use a hair mask once a week.
• Consider making ample use of cute straw hats to protect your hair from the sun.

READ "Hair Vitamins" for Healthier Hair and Faster Hair Growth

Water, Water, Water!

When temperatures rise to the point that your body needs to self-cool by sweating more and dilating its blood vessels to radiate heat away from your body, you lose fluids rapidly and are at risk of dehydration.

During summer, boost your water intake by always having a bottle of water with you and snacking on water melon, berries, cucumbers and other foods that contain plenty of H2O. Guess what you should stay away from? Yes, it's alcohol, of course! If you do go out boozing during summer, sports drinks that contain electrolytes will help you recover your losses more quickly.