Prepping for summer
By Meg Rivera
SUMMER is upon us—and so are the rays of the sun on our skin. With the weather getting warmer and the call of the beach getting louder, it’s easy to forget to protect ourselves. Last year I made the mistake of getting my first sunburn at the start of the summer. It would be about two and half weeks before I was able to enjoy the outdoors again. The burning, the peeling, the pervasive scent of aloe vera gel—it’s not worth it.
The ozone layer is not going to be enough to protect us for long. We’re going to need to take some steps of our own to make sure that we don’t absorb too much of the harmful ultraviolet rays. Dermatologists prescribe sunscreen, but I believe that staying out of the sun during peak hours works even better.
This week, here are three apps that alert you when the rays of the sun are at their strongest. Protection is great, but prevention is really where we should begin. Have a look at some of these, and rock out the summer—sunburn free!
App name: Ultraviolet ~ UV Index
App developer: Robocat
Available on: iTunes
Easy to use: Ultraviolet tells you the UV index from pretty much anywhere in the world. It gives you ratings from a scale of 1 to 10. With each rating comes some advice on how best to avoid the sun. You can’t get anymore straightforward than that really.
Overall comment: This app does exactly as it says it will, and it even offers you advice depending on your skin tone. One thing I will say about it, though, is that it is a gorgeous app. I love the design and the ambient screen provided for the day’s rating. The predictions can go as far as a day in advance, which is perfect if you’re trying to figure out how much protection you’re going to need at tomorrow’s beach outing. Four clicks out of five.
App name: EPA’s Sunwise UV Index
App developer: United States Environment Protection Agency
Available on: iTunes, Google Play, Blackberry
Easy to use: This has taken a more technical approach to alerting us of UV ratings. All you need to do is input your area and it displays the projected rating for the day. It’s a color-coded table as well as a number that tells you, so that could get a little confusing.
Overall comment: If the first app was a fantastic meal in a restaurant, this one is a meal put together by a nutritionist. It’s not as fancy as the first app reviewed, but it gets the job done and is simply all about efficiency. The one exception they make is the social media part of it, which allows app users to connect with each other and post pictures of them protecting themselves from the sun. It’s a useless feature, so you would do well to ignore that. Two clicks out of five.
App name: Wolfram Sun Exposure Reference App
App developer: Wolfram Group, LLC
Available on: iTunes, Google Play
Easy to use: Wolfram Sun Exposure helps you calculate how long you can be in the sun before you burn. Completely shutting out the sunlight can actually be as detrimental as getting too much for it, so this app helps you find the happy medium.
Overall comment: The calculations take into account your skin tone, SPF in your sunscreen, clothing and UV index for the day. Most experts say that 20 minutes is enough for you to get your Vitamin D, but you will need to be aware of how long you can be outside without burning. Handy, but a little too technical. Three clicks out of five.
