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Frequently Asked Questions

Recently, the Food and Drug Administration proposed implementing long over-due rules governing the ingredients, labeling, and testing of many sunscreens which claim to protect skin from both the sun’s UVB rays, which cause sunburn, and more importantly, UVA rays which cause more serious long-term damage such as aging of the skin and skin cancer.

Currently there are few products on the market considered broadspectrum (protect against both UVA and UVB rays). Fortunately, Smart Girls Who Surf and Surf-Vival SPF 30 sunblock are products that are considered broadspectrum. Surf-Vival contains an active ingredient called Zinc Oxide, which is one of few FDA approved ingredients which provides protection from both UVA and UVB rays. Our sunblock is a natural sunblock using active ingredients called Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide, to make up the SPF of 30+ and are two of the few FDA approved ingredients which provide protection from both UVA and UVB.


Get a quick education on skin protection from these frequently asked questions:

What is the difference between UVA and UVB rays?

UVB rays produce that too familiar sunburn. They also cause skin cancer. Current SPF (sun protection factor) ratings effectively rate the level of UVB protection that they provide their given products. UVB rays have a shorter wave length which means that they do not penetrate in to the deep layers of the skin.

UVA rays produce aging aspects of skin which include: deep wrinkles, pigmentation (sun spots) ,dry skin, and loss of elasticity. More and more studies are showing a strong link between UVA rays and the development of various types of skin cancer, specifically melanoma.

What Does SPF mean?

SPF (Sun Protection Factor) measure how long it takes protected skin (skin with sunscreen) to turn red or sunburn compared to unprotected skin (no sunscreen). For example if a person was out in the sun with no protection and started to burn after 10 minutes, then a person with a SPF 15 or higher sunscreen on will take 150 minutes to burn SPF values only measure the level of UVB protection.

Is there really a SPF 45 or higher?

No, many sunscreen companies use the SPF values as a way to market and sell their sunscreen. The reason is after reaching a level of SPF 30, there is a plateau in the effectiveness of UVB protection in sunscreen. So, a sunscreen with a SPF 30 will block 97% of UVB rays from the sun while a sunscreen with a SPF 50 will block approximately 98% of the suns UVB rays. This 1% increase equates to an additional 10 minutes, more or less of fun in the sun.

When should I apply sunscreen and how often?

This is the million dollar question! You should ALWAYS apply sunscreen at least 20 minutes before leaving the house. Why? Because that is exactly how long it takes your skin to absorb the sunscreen and allow the the active ingredients to retract/ deflect the sun’s damaging rays.

Re-application of sunscreen is the key to prevention. ALWAYS re-apply sunscreen after 2 hours in the sun. There is no such thing as ALL-DAY protection. This is the biggest misconception with any sunscreen.

Skin Cancer Facts

  • More than a million people will be diagnosed with skin cancer this year

  • One in 5 Americans will get skin cancer in the course of a lifetime

  • More than half of all newly diagnosed cancers are skin cancers

  • One person dies every hour from skin cancer, primarily melanoma

  • Melanoma kills more young women than any other cancer

  • Nationally, there are more new cases of skin cancer each year than the combined incidence of cancer of the breast, prostate, lung and colon.

  • More than 90 percent of all skin cancers are caused by sun exposure, yet fewer than 33 percent of adults, adolescents, and children routinely use sun protection.

  • The risk of developing melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer, has more than doubled in the past decade.

  • One in four person who develop skin cancer is under the age of 40
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