What Does Sunscreen Have to Do With Heat Rash Flare-ups?

When you think of heat rash – you think of sunscreen. Or at least I did.The intuitive philosophy is that the sun causes heat and to avoid heat rash you need to lather that sunscreen on thick to avoid a prickly heat flare up.

This was my initial train of thought. The first Caribbean vacay I went on, I did just that. I slathered that sunscreen all over me, all day, every day.

But my heat rash got worse – it got to the po

int where it hurt to walk because the irritated skin on my inner thighs was chafing! I know that’s TMI – but those of you who have experienced heat rash will sympathize with me. It can really ruin those long romantic vacay walks on the beach!

Back to sunscreen…here’s the thing – heat rash is caused when you are sweating a lot but the sweat ducts are blocked so the sweat can’t escape. Sweat is essentially one of the body’s self cooling mechanisms. So when it’s overheated and can’t sweat, the sweat gets stuck under the skin and irritation forms around it.

When you are prone to heat rash  – picking the proper sunscreen is ESSENTIAL!  I have learned this lesson the hard way. I thought I could just buy sensitive skin sunscreen from the drugstore to prevent the prickly heat but alas, those pesky little bumps still showed up packing the old familiar irritation and itching.  F…M…L!

MOST sunscreens make it harder for sweat to escape the skin’s surface because they form a protective layer over the skin and trap the sweat. Not to mention the fact that many sunscreens contain a plethora of chemicals, fragrances, and other not-so-skin-friendly ingredients. But, of course, we can’t walk around the resort on vacation looking like lobsters can we? We do need SOME form of SPF protection from the sun.

So, the moral of the story? Make sure your sunscreen is light and breathable if you want to prevent prickly heat.  I was running into flare-ups by using the standard so-called “sensitive skin” sunscreens from the drugstore. These products just didn’t make the cut because chemicals that contribute to irritation were still present in them.  There are great non-irritating out there – in fact, throughout my research I found many that work quite well. They just tend to be more costly and they are often mineral based vs chemical based, which is ideal.

Source: Get the Gloss

Some products that work to prevent heat rash with links to purchase on Amazon (I will add to this list as I find more good ones):
La Roche-Posay Anthelios 30 cooling water lotion sunscreen: https://amzn.to/2uTEplL
Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Cream SPF 50+ Wet Force For Face: https://amzn.to/2GFyg1S
Avene ultra light hydrating sunscreen lotion spf 50+ face: https://amzn.to/2qbLxFk
Ultrasun Face with SPF 30 50 ml: https://amzn.to/2EtCa81

Here’s to you enjoying vacation without your skin screaming at you the whole time! Cheers.