Always keeping a bottle of sun cream in your bag is a necessity if, like me, you have sensitive skin and like being pale. I must admit, I actually love shopping for sun cream. I’m thrilled to share my latest sun cream haul with you…

I love nothing more than researching beauty products and skin care ingredients. I can’t tell you the amount of hours I’ve spent looking for sun cream. Usually, I buy SPF 50 but I’ve been reading up on various key ingredients used in mineral sun creams, many of which are made with lower factors such as SPF 30.

I’m not going to lie, as I’ve always used SPF 50, I initially worried about using a lower factor but allow me to let you in on a secret. SPF 50 sun creams only offer 1% more protection against UVB rays. SPF 30 sun creams block nearly 97% of UV rays and SPF 30 blocks nearly 98% of UV rays.

There are two different kinds of sun cream to choose from: physical (also known as mineral sun creams) and chemical sun creams.

Mineral sun creams work by acting as a barrier and deflect the sun’s rays away from the skin using titanium dioxide and zinc oxide to protect skin against UVA and UVB rays.

Chemical sunscreens absorb the sun’s rays and can contain ingredients oxybenzone, avobenzone, octisalate, octocrylene, homosalate and octinoxate, which many prefer to avoid due to controversial claims about their harmful effects.

James from Jason UK says: “Our mineral sunscreen products use FDA approved ingredients like titanium dioxide and zinc oxide that provide a physical barrier to ultraviolet radiation.”

Soko Glam founder Charlotte Cho writes in her bestselling book, The Little Book of Skin Care: Korean Beauty Secrets for Health, Glowing Skin: “The plus side of mineral-based sun screens is that they’re gentle on the skin (and won’t irritate conditions like rosacea, which can be supersensitive to both the sun and sunscreen).”

Although I’ve read a lot about them, mineral sun creams are still fairly new to me. I’m happy that my beloved Sunprise Mild Airy Finish SPF 50 sun cream by Etude House contains titanium oxide and zinc oxide.

You’ll probably know from my last sun cream post, that I like trying various brands. I usually buy chemical sun creams but I’ve recently bought two mineral sun creams for my upcoming holiday to Split, Croatia and Slovenia.

Chemical Free Mineral Based Sun Block SPF 30+, Jason UK at BigGreenSmile, £13.99 (currently on offer for £10.39)

This physical sun block is free from chemicals and fragrances and has been formulated to shield sensitive skin from UV rays. It has a high percentage of zinc oxide (14.5%) as well as titanium dioxide (2%).

Ingredients include camomile and calendula extracts to soothe skin. It also contains moisturising shea butter, sunflower seed oil, grape seed oil and aloe leaf. My skin is very sensitive and in the past has reacted badly to certain sun creams so I can’t wait to use this.

It’s water resistant for up to 80 minutes so I’ll be able to enjoy lots of swimming while protecting my skin! I actually bought five bottles of this!

SPF 50 Mineral Sport Sunscreen Lotion, Bare Republic at BigGreenSmile, £17 (currently on offer for £13.60)

I know I’ve praised sun creams with factor 30 but I’ve been keen to try this one for a while. The mineral formula contains titanium dioxide (5.6%) and zinc oxide (3.7%) in addition to plant derived antioxidants such as aloe and olive extracts.

This sun cream is formulated for sport activities, so it’s perfect to take on holiday with me! It’s water resistant for up to 80 minutes too.

Tags:  bare republic sun cream be safe in the sun beauty beauty addict beauty junkie how to be jason organics jason organics sun cream mineral sun cream natural sun cream paraben free sensitive skin sun cream sun cream factor 30 sun cream factor 50