Do I really need sunscreen every day?
Yes, you need sunscreen every day if your day includes daylight. UVA passes through clouds and window glass year-round, quietly driving most of what we call facial aging and adding up toward skin cancers.
Daily SPF users age visibly slower than intermittent users in controlled studies; no cream sold at any price outperforms this effect.
Make it effortless: SPF 50 as the last morning step, two finger-lengths for face and neck, reapplied when outdoors for long. Darker skin tones burn less but still tan, scar and develop pigment problems that sunscreen prevents.
Source: NHS, sunscreen and sun safety
See a doctor promptly if
- A mole or spot that is changing in size, shape or color over weeks to months
- A lesion that bleeds, crusts, itches persistently or does not heal within four weeks
- A new pigmented streak under a nail, or a dark spot on the palm, sole or inside the mouth
- A firm growing lump in the skin, or a new lump under the arm or in the groin alongside a changing mole
Try the symptom diary10 seconds a day, free, nothing to installWhich hours hurt, and after which tasks. That pattern is what turns "my wrist aches" into something an employer has to act on.
Answered by the AskDoc Medical Team · Medically reviewed under our Medical Director, MBBS · How we review
The one skin product doctors push
Broad-spectrum SPF 50, worn daily, does more against skin aging and skin cancer risk than any cream sold above it. The best sunscreen is the one you will actually wear every morning.
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