Top 4 Tips For Preventing Skin Cancer On Your Nose And Face

Exposure to UV radiation (sunlight) is one of the top risk factors when it comes to skin cancer. This means keeping your skin protected from UV exposure is one of the best ways to prevent a future skin cancer diagnosis. At Rayward Apparel we believe your clothing should do more than just look and feel great, but also help protect your skin. With this in mind, we only carry products which have been certified at UPF 30 or greater. Additionally, we combine this UV protection with comfort and quality to create UPF clothing to help prevent skin cancer. However, certain parts of the body are harder to protect from UV rays than others. You can’t simply throw a UPF shirt over your face and walk around town. This is why, statistically speaking, skin cancer on the nose and face occurs more often than anywhere else on the body.

Preventing skin cancer on your nose and face is the same as anywhere else on your body - you simply need to keep it protected from UV exposure. Thankfully, there are some very easy ways to make sure you always have the proper face protection without looking like you’re about to rob a bank. Here are 5 tips and tricks to keeping your nose and face protected throughout the day:

Wide Brim Sun Hats

Sun hats (also known as UPF hats and bucket hats) with a wide brim will help keep your nose and face in the shade throughout the day. Make sure you find a sun hat that is not only certified at UPF 30 or above, but one that has a large enough brim to provide shade to your entire face for most of the day. Because of the low angle of the sun you may still need some face sunscreen in the early morning and late afternoon.

Neck Gaiters

Sun protective neck gaiters, also known as tube bandana's, are one of the most versatile sun protective accessories you could ever own. This is especially true when it comes to trying to prevent skin cancer on your nose, face, and neck. Neck gaiters are designed to be worn around your neck, but are very stretchy and can be worn in a variety of ways. To keep your face covered, you simply pull the gaiter up over your nose and mouth. It’s lightweight and breathable so it won’t cause any discomfort, but will provide excellent sun protection. You can also adjust the gaiter to be worn as a balaclava to help keep your head AND face protected at the same time.   

Find Shade

Whenever possible, seek shade. If you’re at the beach, bring an umbrella so you can create your own shade. While this preventative practice is not specific to your nose and face, it’s always an easy and effective way of minimizing UV exposure.

Find A Quality Face Sunscreen

The tried and true method of sun protection – simply wear sunscreen. The difficult part about sunscreen is that you need to constantly reapply every two hours which can be difficult to do throughout the day. This is especially true if you are in and out of the sun all day, which can be a bothersome process. So while we typically recommend finding a quality sun hat or gaiter, sunscreen is always a great option.  There are plenty of quality sunscreens designed specifically to be applied on your face. These sunscreens are often more comfortable and won’t have the same torturous burning effect if it gets into your eyes.