UV, UPF, SPF- what does it all mean?

 UV Protection. UPF Protective Clothing. SPF rankings. What does this all mean?

UV stands for the Ultra Violet rays that are emitted by our very strong Mr. Sun! Excessive exposure to these rays is the main cause of many skin cancer's, and skin diseases.

There are different methods of protection, two of the most common ways are with UPF Protective Clothing and different SPF Sunscreens.

UPF stands for Ultraviolet Protection Factor. UPF is the rating designation for sun protective textiles and clothing. It’s similar to SPF (Sun Protection Factor) ratings for sunscreen.  The UPF factor ranks how effectively a piece of clothing shields against the sun. For example, a fabric rated UPF 30 means that, if 30 units of UV fall on the fabric, only 1 unit will pass through to the skin. A UPF 30 fabric that blocks 29 out of 30 units of UV is, therefore blocking 96.7%.  Our UPF protective swimwear and hats are UPF 50+! This means that 98% of the sun's rays will not get through our fabric.

SPF quite similarly stands for Sun Protective Factor. This is most commonly used
to rank the strength of it. A SPF of 15 means that only 1/15^th of the sun's rays will hit the skin. The higher the ranking the more effective, especially for those with pale or sensitive skin.

To sum up, try and always reach for both the highest ranking UPF and SPF to keep yourself sun and skin happy!