Traveller issues a serious warning about sunscreen to any tourist heading to Australia in summer: ‘Don’t bring it from home’

An American in Australia has warned other travelers of the serious threat of UV rays and skin cancer Down Under.

Maryfrom the US travels through Australia and New Zealand and says she does not trust foreign sun protection brands.

Melanoma Institute revealed that Australia has the highest melanoma rates in the world, with one person diagnosed every 30 minutes and one person dying from the disease every six hours.

“This is just your daily reminder that if you travel to Australia or New Zealand, you need to throw away your sunscreen and buy some here,” Mary said.

‘Australia has one of the highest rates of UV radiation and skin cancer in the world, and sunscreen requirements are very strict here.’

Cancer Council Australia recommends using sun protection every day when the UV level is 3 or higher.

Melanoma is the most common cancer in Australians aged 20 to 39 years old, and 50 percent of patients with advanced melanoma do not respond or become resistant to new immunotherapy treatments.

However, a survey of 1,000 Australians by the Skin Health Institute in 2019 found that many people in their 20s and 30s feel they are too young to need a skin check.

Using sunscreen not only reduces the risk of skin cancer and sunburn, it also reduces the aging effect of the sun.

SPF (sun protection factor) is a measure of how long it takes UVB rays to burn the skin when sunscreen is applied, compared to unprotected skin.

So if sunscreen protected skin takes 300 seconds to burn, but bare skin burns in 10 seconds, the SPF is 30 (300 divided by 10).

The + sign on some SPF products means the rating is higher than the number. It can only be used on products with SPF 50, so SPF 50+ indicates an impressive protection factor of 60 or more.

These figures may look very different in other countries and may not be as strictly regulated.

Hannah English, a pharmaceutical scientist, told us Primer Australia’s extreme levels of UV radiation and harsh climate have led to strict regulations, so it’s worth always buying sun protection Down Under.

If sunscreen is made in the US and not available in Australia, she says, “Because their UVA protection testing is not as stringent, you may be exposed to more UVA rays.”

Many shared horror stories of sunburn in Australia and New Zealand.

“I was in the car with my mother for 15 minutes with the darkest tinted windows and got burned,” one woman said.

‘It is important to be vigilant. You can reapply every hour and sometimes still get burned here. Most people do their best to be sun smart, but it’s very difficult,” wrote another.

“Personally, I only buy SPF 50+ or ​​invisible zinc sunscreen,” one person said.

“I live in Australia and I get sunburnt walking to my mailbox and I’m not even kidding,” one man said. “Just don’t leave the house.”