With winters approaching northern India, we all love to enjoy the warmth of the sun. The luxury of having lunch under the umbrella in the garden with sunrays around on a chilling day of January sounds exotic, but watch out too much sun can cause wrinkles and deplete moisture of your skin and the list goes on. True, the sun may have some Vitamin D advantages, but the damage it can do to your skin makes the D factor seem pretty minuscule. So next time you think on relaxing in sun in cold days, think twice.

AFFECTED AREAS
The most sensitive and usually, the driest part of the face are near the eyes. The skin here is thin, and can wrinkle easily. Also, this is the first area where age begins to show in the form of crows feet, fine lines under the eyes and sagging of the area under the brow.
Constant exposure can make you look as much as five to seven years older. Sun rays deplete the water under the skin's surface, leading to a dry skin that wrinkles easily. After a period of burning, chapping and peeling, your skin's surface becomes hard and rubbery, losing its natural oils and moisture, and the softness associated with youth.
The really serious damage can be skin cancer. Loot out for any skin changes; a mole that changes colour, size or develops an irregular shape, should receive immediate medical attention. New lumps, pigmentation, thickening of skin parts, or a non-healing sore patch on either the lips or ears, all need to be checked.

WHAT TO DO?
The more direct sun you avoid, the better it is. Any anti sun moisturizers, the SPF ones, protect skin considerably against the UV wrath, but not completely. SPF stands for sun protection factor. It indicates the level of protection against the burning ultra violet rays. It blocks out harmful sun rays that cause wrinkling and other forms of skin damage. Make a point to use it every day. The higher the SPF, the more the protection from the sun rays. Also, if your skin burns easily, a higher SPF can help. For the hot Indian summers, you should use a minimum SPF level of 15.

Avoid going out between 11.00 a.m. and 3.00 p.m. Wear UV blocking sunglasses. Purchase a reputed brand of sunglasses with the label specifying that they block UV rays. Wearing broad-rimmed hats looks stylish and protects the face from sun damage. Alternatively, experiment with scarves, interesting head gear. The sun damages hair too, making it fragile and brittle. Apply sunscreen 15 minutes before stepping out of home and reapply sunscreen after an hour and a half if stepping out again.

Use Blistex, Lip-Eze or Sun Buffer Lipstick for lips. The first two are lick-proof. Normal Vaseline may replace oils, but not the moisture. Keep drinking lots of water when in the sun, and avoid alcohol as this dries up the system.