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" Life isn&amp;#039;t fair. And here to prove this point is the sun, a gigantic nuclear reactor in the sky that beckons one to bask within its awesome warmth, and also emits pernicious UV rays that could potentially turn you into a Shar-Pei-faced raisin if you choose to overindulge. Wrinkles, melanoma, sun poisoning \u2014 all are the price you pay for irresponsibly enjoying the sun in excess without protection. During summer, it&amp;#039;s hard to avoid talk of such dastardly risks. But what about other times of the year? Once the BBQs, baseball games, and beach-y weekends have faded away, does the sun pack it in for the season too? Hardly. &amp;quot;Most people aren&amp;#039;t aware that UVA rays \u2014 which make up 95% of all UV rays \u2014 are almost equally intense during daylight hours all year long,&amp;quot; Dr. Whitney Bowe, a board-certified dermatologist in NYC who specializes in skin rejuvenation, tells us. That&amp;#039;s right: The sun is out to get you whether it&amp;#039;s Memorial Day, Labor Day, or New Year&amp;#039;s Day. In fact, &amp;quot;UV rays penetrate clouds and are also reflected off of snow, so when you step outside after a blizzard, you&amp;#039;re not only getting UV rays from above, but they&amp;#039;re bouncing back at you from below,&amp;quot; she says. A double whammy, as it were. This begs the question of how one&amp;#039;s sun-protection regimen should change from summer to winter? The answer, according to Dr. Bowe, is not much. &amp;quot;Applying sunscreen to your face should become a morning habit throughout the year, like brushing your teeth.&amp;quot; Further motivation, you say? How about this? A recent study conducted by the Annals of Internal Medicine even found that using an SPF daily can slow the aging process by 24%. And if you&amp;#039;re in the car during daylight hours, even in winter, you should also consider slathering SPF on those parts of your skin not covered. &amp;quot;That car won&amp;#039;t protect you,&amp;quot; says Dr. Bowe, &amp;quot;People tend to age more on the side of their body that faces the car window.&amp;quot; Yikes.  Sunglasses: an all-year essential. (From Warby Parker&amp;#039;s Meridian Collection.)  On a side note, Dr. Bowe wants you to stop walking around without sunglasses. &amp;quot;The repeated action of squinting and the UV damage from the sun can lead to crow&amp;#039;s feet around the eyes.&amp;quot; Considering an eye cream with SPF in it might be as good of an idea as purchasing a pair of shades that provide broad-spectrum protection. As for SPF strength: The consensus amongst dermatologists is that we should all be using an SPF of 30 or higher. Dr. Bowe recommends LaRoche-Posay Anthelios SPF 50 Mineral Light Sunscreen Fluid. If the name reminds you too much of a Fiona Apple song, you can also try Innovative Skincare Eclipse SPF 50+ or MD Solar Sciences Anti-Aging Daily Moisturizer. But what happens if you forget to do all of this? Aside from prematurely aging and exposing yourself to cancer-causing radiation, you could potentially burn \u2014 even if you&amp;#039;re dark skinned. It turns out melanin in the darkest skin has a natural SPF of only about 13.4, well below the safe limit. And the lightest skin has a natural SPF of 3.4, so you pale guys are completely screwed. No matter who you are, wear sunscreen. Of course, Labor Day Weekend is coming up. And even after reading all this, you might still refuse to be reasonable and protect yourself. For shame. But if you do get burned, we leave you with a few tips on how to deal. If you&amp;#039;re blistering, call your doctor right away. Otherwise, here are some interesting recommendations from the good doctor on how to manage the damage with something other than overly sticky aloe gel:  Pop an aspirin or ibuprofen within 24 hours of sun exposure, which can help reduce soreness and inflammation. Apply a cool washcloth to the sunburnt areas or soak in a cool bath to help lower your body temperature, and pat (don&amp;#039;t rub!) yourself dry with a soft towel. Dab a low-dose topical steroid like hydrocortisone to the scorched area, which may help reduce pain and swelling. If you have the unfortunate circumstance of having had a mosquito bite you on your sunburn, this is also a great choice. Do not use a topical antihistamine or calamine lotion to stop the itch \u2014 they can make your sunburn worse. For the body, slather on a moisturizing cream with soothing ingredients. Aveeno Active Naturals Daily Moisturizing Lotion is an excellent choice, as it contains colloidal oatmeal to help soothe the skin. Plus, its unscented formula won&amp;#039;t cause further irritation or make you feel like scotch tape. For the face and neck, Bowe recommends SkinCeuticals Emollience \u2014 it absorbs quickly and contains major moisture-restoring ingredients like algae extracts and essential oils.  "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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