I’m sitting in a beautiful cafe in Bondi Beach. I’m visiting Sydney for a couple of days, and just made a trip to Bondi to take a look because even though I’m Australian I’m ashamed to say I’ve never been to Bondi before!
Check out the desserts in the front of the window at the cafe I’m sitting in. And notice in the picture how I’m just drinking green tea. Yeah, I look so disciplined, but just between you and me - I’m saving my ‘treat’ for later. That’s going to be my 10% food for the soul after the 90% I’ve been eating for my body 
Bondi Beach is gorgeous and even though I was lugging my laptop around with me so I could write a blog article, I still took a walk down to the beach and almost put my toes in the water …but it was a little too cold for me to go for a swim.
I’ve forgotten my sunscreen and hat which made me think about skin, acne and the sun, and the controversy about whether or not the sun is good for clearing acne.
Some people say the sun is good for clearing acne, others disagree. I’m kind of in between.
Some of my readers and YouTube viewers swear that the sun helped clear their acne. It’s true that vitamin D from the sun can do good things for your body and for your skin. It’s actually important to get some sun rays to make sure you get enough of that natural, healthy vitamin D. I find a bit of sun is also so warming and can make me happy, which is great. But there can always be too much of a good thing, and the amount of sun that you and your skin can tolerate will depend on your skin type and where you live.
Because of my complexion and where I live, standing in the sun for five seconds is really the only ‘healthy’ amount that I need each day. But keep in mind that my skin is probably the palest type and I live in the most dangerous part of the world when it comes to UV skin damage. There is a big hole in the ozone layer above Queensland (where I live) that makes the sun way more damaging than most other parts of the world.
The sun is also very drying to the skin, so any excess sun that you get can damage and dry out the skin, causing possible breakouts and future wrinkles.
When I spend too much time in the sun and get a slight burn, or even a sun kissed glow, my skin always looks better for a couple of days. However (and this is the important bit), I always without a doubt get a small breakout after those great couple of days. I’m not entirely sure why this is so, but my theory is that I’ve dried out my skin too much so my pores are producing excess oil to try and make up for it. The pores then clog up with the over production of oil and then I get a breakout (although it’s never a really bad breakout).
You also need to be wary of the other side effects of getting too much sun, such as the possibility of sun spots, skin cancer and future wrinkles. I love the sun, I’m a beach girl at heart, but you do need to be wary of the amount of sun you’re getting and limit the time you’re without sun protection in the hottest part of the day.
I used to work with a girl who took particular care with protecting her skin from the sun. She had beautiful skin. She went to the absolute extreme though - she always wore a wide brimmed hat and long sleeves whenever she was out and her skin loved her for it. She has beautiful soft white skin that hardly had a mark or freckle on it. But of course, she naturally had very pale white skin so it’s more important for her to protect her skin from the sun than somebody who has olive or dark skin.
Here are some sun and acne rules to keep in mind:
1. Avoid the sun if you’re taking oral antibiotics to treat your acne
The oral antibiotics that are prescribed for treating acne will make your skin more sensitive to the sun, so you will burn a lot faster. Make sure you stay about the sun as much as possible, and wear sun protection if you want to go out. Wear a hat and plenty of sunscreen.
Once you go off the oral antibiotics you can go back to getting more sun again.
2. The amount of sun you can take depends on your skin type and where you live
I have the palest skin and I live in the part of the world that has the highest UV index, so I have to be extra cautious about how much sun I get. When I do go out I make sure I’m wearing a hat and sunscreen. Most mineral makeups act as a sunscreen as well, so I’m confident that mineral makeup is something that I can wear on my face that will not clog my pores and make my breakout, but will also protect me from the sun. I’ve put some on today partially to hide my acne scars and partially to protect me from the Bondi Beach sun.
If you want to look for a facial sunscreen, look for something that is non-comedogenic. The best facial sunscreen I’ve found is from dermalogica. It’s not natural but it’s the best one I’ve tried because it has not given me a breakout when I’ve used it. It’s also tinted so it gives you a little bit of coverage (and boys, you could even get away with using this one) The dermalogica facial sunscreen is a little expensive but you only put it on your face so a tube lasts a while.
If you have olive or dark skin, or live in a part of the world where the sun is not strong or the weather is cold, then you can definitely stay out in the sun for a lot longer without worrying about it affecting your skin.
3. Don’t overdo it
It’s true - a tan will help hide your acne and acne scars because the paler the skin the more the acne will stand out. However, you can overdo it. If you really badly want a tanned look, instead of lying in the sun for hours trying to get a tan and risking possible sun damage and future wrinkles, opt for a spray tan. I don’t know a lot about spray tans and what they put in the stuff they spray onto you, but I hear you can choose more natural options that pigment your skin without being too harmful. Make sure you’re fully aware of what’s going onto your body before you do it.
Fake tans can also look a bit ridiculous if too heavy so keep in mind that white skin can be beautiful, and girls we always have makeup to hide any scars or pimples that we’re embarrassed about. I have white skin and freckles and I’ve learnt to love it
4. Help your skin heal if you get burnt
If you ever get a sunburn, the best remedy (by far) is aloe vera. I used to have my own aloe vera in a pot plant. I’d just cut off a stem and put it in the freezer for an hour or so. When it was nice and cold I’d squeeze out the gel and paste it all over my sun burns. The redness would be completely gone by the next day. It can be a little bit sticky and doesn’t smell that great but it’s the most awesome sun burn cure that I’ve found.
If you don’t have your own aloe vera plant you can buy aloe vera gel. Find one that has the most aloe vera and the least amount of other stuff added to it. Most grocery and health food stores should stock aloe vera gel.
Aloe vera is also great for acne, so feel confident that you can put it over your acne when you get the burn without it clogging your pores or making your breakout. In fact, aloe vera is very healing so it’s more likely to help speed up the healing process of your pimples.
Fran
Fran Kerr is the founding editor of High on Health. To cure your acne, sign up to Fran's FREE acne cure mini-course or download her latest how to guide, Eat Away Your Acne.
5 responses ↓
I live close to the Atlantic Ocean, the Jersey shore. I notice that my skin gets way better when I spend time at the beach, but I don’t think that it’s only from the sun. When it’s not too cold, I go into the ocean water for hours, just playing with the waves. I believe that it’s the salt in the water, and maybe even the microscopic plant life, that greatly benefits my skin.
I agree with Andy. My skin always improves after a week at the beach - if I go swimming in the ocean regularly. I think it might be a combination of clean air and salt water. Regular use of sunscreen however, with no swimming will block my pores.
I’m glad you mentioned the affects of sun on those taking anti-biotics. I have a friend who has been suffering skin flareups from sunlight whilst on anti-biotics.
Hi Fran,
I came across your videos on youtube, and started browsing around this site.
I’ve got a few questions so far… when you mentioned you went on a no-sugar detox, did you avoid EVERYTHING that contains sugar? You said you’re not much of a fruit person.. as in even natural sugar from fresh fruits? I was thinking of doing similar, and imagine that it was very tough.
I’m 24 and have been suffering from acne since puberty. It gets pretty bad sometimes, but there’d be months were I’m clear for the most part. I wouldn’t say that my general diet is bad either (not much junk food at all), so maybe it’s hormones?
I’m thinking I should probably see a doctor too, but I wanted to try your detox plan, and skin cleaning procedures you wrote about here.
So let me know how far you went with the no-sugar thing.
Thanks!
Hi Simon,
Greatly reducing the amount of refined sugar you eat will help reduce the amount of inflammations you get. This is because the spike in your blood sugar level can aggravate acne, but not cause it.
Completely cutting out all sugars will only help acne that is caused by Candida - which you may or may not have.
If your acne has been persistent since puberty then it’s definitely worth visiting a doctor and a naturopath. If it’s only mild then I’d visit a naturopath first because a doctor will prescribe medications that can have side effects. A naturopath will help you with your diet and find supplements that are good for your body.
If nothing is working after 3 months and/or your acne is moderate or sever, then it’s worth visiting a doctor.
Also sign up to my mini-course (link on the right hand side of the screen). It’s free and I give weekly steps on how you can treat your acne. It’s a holistic guideline that will compliment any other treatment you may or may not be on.
Take care and keep me updated on your progress.
I believe the effect is real and is due almost exclusively to vitamin D production in the skin when exposed to sunlight.
Vitamin D supplements — 1,000 I.U./day — are inexpensive and avoid issues about sunburn. The upper safe limit in the U.S. is 2,000 I.U./day and that is thought to be very conservative. I personally take 2,000/day.
A good website is: http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/
Leave a Response