Product Review: Neutrogena Fresh Cooling Body Mist Sunblock and Neutrogena Age Shield Face SPF 70

Neutrogena offers an entire spectrum of dermatologist tested and non-comedogenic sunblock products, from Allure Magazine's editor's choice award winning Ultra Sheer Dry Touch Sunblock with SPF 55 to a Fresh Cooling Body Mist Sunblock. The tricky thing is deciding which product will nourish your skin and provide the right level of protection to prevent sunburn. Hopefully, this review of various Neutrogena sunblocks will help you choose a product which will suit your sun protection needs and your lifestyle.

What makes a good sunblock?

We have all heard the term SPF, but what does it really mean? SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor and the higher the SPF of a sunblocking product, the longer you are protected from the sun. For example a sunblock with an SPF of 15 will block 92% of the sun's UVB rays, meaning if you normally began to get sunburned after 10 minutes without sunblock, wearing a product with an SPF of 15 would protect your skin up to 150 minutes or fifteen times longer.

While UVB rays are the primary culprit in causing sunburn, and are the primary target of most sunblocks and skin care products, they aren't the only type of ray to watch out for. UVA sun rays are as damaging as, and possibly more dangerous than UVB. These rays penetrate deeper into the skin, causing the more long term effects of sun exposure: spots, wrinkles, and other "photo-aging" effects. Recent studies have even begun to draw links between UVA exposure and certain types of skin cancer.

Obviously, you want a sunblock which protects your skin from sunburn, but you also need a product which will help filter some of the UVA rays. Recently patented technologies, such as Neutrogena's Helioplex, helps combat the harmful effects of UVA. In many sunblocks and skin care products the UVA protection begins to break down after prolonged sun exposure, Helioplex products were created specifically to eliminate this problem. The result is a Neutrogena sunblock that covers the entire UVA and UVB spectrum by combining two FDA approved sunscreens, Avobenzone and Oxybenzone.

What is the best Neutrogena product for you?