The science of protection

SO here are the definitive guidelines: You want to apply sun protection of at least SPF15 but it need not be higher than SPF50. You also want to look for creams or lotions that screen out UVA besides UVB, especially in Asia where the sun is more intense.

By now, sun protection is such a norm, especially in the tropics, it's surprising to find out that SPF standards came out only about 30 years ago. Even though the first commercial product was brought to the market in the 1930s, introduced by the founder of L'Oreal.

It's just in recent years though, that scientists are getting a better understanding of UVA just now, as opposed to just UVB. "Now, the need to be protected against UVA radiation is much clearer," says Dominique Moyal, Technico-Regulatory expert in photoprotection, L'Oreal Research & Innovation.