What is sun protection swimwear?

Sun protection swimwear, sun vest, UPF rash vests and similar products are clothing items made of fabric, that are designed to reduce the effects of sun exposure.    Standard summer fabrics offer about ~5 UPF whereas sun protection clothing typically offers at least ~30 UPF.

What is SPF?

Sun Protection Factor is the degree to which a sunscreen is expected to protect a human from being burnt.  For example, if you would burn protected in just 1 minute, application of SPF 10 sunscreen would mean you would not burn for 10 minutes.

What is UPF?

Ultraviolet Protection Factor measures the degree to which ultraviolet radiation is filtered by a fabric.  It is measured based on the amount of radiation that passes through the material, rather than the effect on any person.  SPF measures UVB radiation only.  Note that all fabrics offer some protection against the sun, UPF measures the degree of that protection.

Is UPF the same as SPF?

No, whilst both Sun Protection Factor (SPF) and UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor) are ways to measure protection offered against sunburn.  SPF relates to sunscreen, and UPF relates to fabrics that protect you from the sun in a similar way.  Some manufacturers may use the terms interchangeably, but they do not mean the same thing. SPF measures UVA and UVB radiation, that means that it shows there is more protection against the effects of the sun other than sunburn, such as premature ageing.

What do UPF ratings mean?

This is the ASTM Standard for Sun Protective Clothing and Swimwear:

  • UPF 15-24 offers a good level of protection with 93.3% to 95.9% of UV blocked

  • UPF 25-39 offers a very good level of protection with 96% to 97.4% of UV blocked

  • UPF 40-50 offers an excellent level of protection with 97.5% – 98+% of UV blocked

What are the benefits of sun protective swimwear?

UPF clothing makes everyone safer from the sun’s rays, and is particularly helpful for people who are sensitive to the sun, children who have less developed skin, people who are in equatorial regions, and sometimes people who are taking  medication.

You can read more about the benefits of sun protective clothing at www.skincancer.org

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