Per data from the Skin Cancer Foundation, up to half of UVA rays present outdoors can penetrate automobile glass and reach your exposed skin. If you aren’t protecting yourself from these harmful rays, now is the time to consider options like applying sunscreen and installing UV-blocking automotive window tint. 

The Dangers of Driving

The Skin Cancer Foundation also notes that skin cancer – including both melanoma and nonmelanoma types – is around 50% more likely to occur on the left side of the body in the United States. This is because American drivers sit on the left side of the vehicle, which means their left side are exposed to the sun more frequently. Back in 2012, numerous news outlets, including CBS News, ran a story about a then 69-year-old trucker who drove a truck for 28 years. A shocking photo published with the story showed that one side of his face was visibly more wrinkled than the other – a surefire sign of significant sun damage. 

Protecting Your Family & Friends

While passengers can also have an increased skin cancer risk due to their exposure to UVA, drivers are far more common than passengers. Just as you likely wouldn’t walk on the beach for an hour without UV protection, you should never drive your vehicle without some sort of protection. 

Keeping Yourself Safe

Fortunately, there are several things you can do to protect yourself from the harmful effects of UV exposure while driving (or while riding as a passenger), and the three most common include wearing sunscreen, wearing UV-blocking clothing, and installing UV-blocking automotive window tint. 

Sunscreen

The Skin Cancer Foundation recommends wearing a sunscreen product rated SPF 30 or higher for long drives and SPF 15 or higher for shorter trips. Sunscreens use chemical or physical barriers (and sometimes a combination of the two) to prevent UV from penetrating your skin. When choosing and applying a sunscreen, it’s best to choose an SPF 30 product and apply it generously to all exposed skin according to the package instructions. 

UV-Blocking Clothing

Numerous clothing items and accessories have been designed with UV protection in mind, and while they are not recommended as your only form of protection, they can certainly provide additional protection when used alongside sunscreen and UV-blocking automotive window tint. Sunglasses, long sleeves, and driving gloves can be especially beneficial. 

Automotive Window Tint

While it can add visual appeal to any car, truck, or SUV, UV-blocking automotive window tint goes far beyond aesthetics. Tint King utilizes FormulaOne® LLumar, which is one of the highest-quality tint products on the market, to ensure long-lasting, eye-appealing UV protection. The LLumar Stratos Series tint blocks more than 99% of harmful UV rays and rejects as much as 97% of infrared heat, which protects your skin and your car while promoting unsurpassed comfort, even during the heat of summer. 

Skin cancer is a very real concern. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, some 9,500 people are diagnosed with the condition every single day in the United States. Reach out to Tint King today to learn more about the LLumar Studio Series UV-blocking automotive window tint and schedule your installation.