Question:
Apparently, suncreen and sunblock are not the same. Can anyone
explain to me the difference? Is one necessarily better than the other?
I have tinted moisturizer with SPF 15, which one is this? (sunscreen or
sunblock?) What kind of products (product name) is best for sunscreen?
for sunblock?
Answer:
With the SPF rating system, it matters little which term is used.
The general opinion is that anything less than SPF 15 is not really good
sun protection and waste of money. So I would guess the term sunblock
applies to SPF 15 and up. The early sun"blocks", such a U-Val, were
targeted at those (then eccentric people) who didn't want to color up at
all, hence "block". Although definitely better than sunscreen, sunblock
still doesn't _completely_ block UV rays; my freckles still laugh at that
idea as they blossom every spring and my complexion still darkens slightly
every summer.
Sunscreen is a more old-fashioned term for less-than-SPF-15 products which
were/are used when one wanted some tanning to take place, but didn't want
to get badly sunburned in the process. The sales pitch was that it
encouraged tanning but not burning. Now disapproved of by the dermatology
establishment whose view is that neither tanning nor burning are good for
the skin.
