Choosing the right clothing can help protect you from the sun.  In fact recently a new measure, SPF (sun protection factor) for textiles have been developed to describe how much UV protection clothes will provide.  Our skin care expert explains how it all works.

Clothing is often considered to be the first line of defence from the sun but not all clothing provides adequate protection from UV.  In fact your typical white cotton t-shirt only provides protection which is equivalent to SPF 6.

Also the protection of fabrics is diminished when the fabric becomes wet or is stretched.  The SPF provided by textiles is mainly influenced by how tightly woven together the fibre is (known as the fabric porosity). This SPF is therefore reduced when the fabric is stretched.

Other things that influence the SPF of fabrics are:

• Thicker fabric (heavier weight) offers more protection than a lighter fabric
• Polyester fabric offers more protection than cotton or rayon
• Naturally pigmented cotton offers more protection than bleached or unbleached cotton
• Dyes (which can act as UV absorbers) that are darker in colour offer more protection than lighter shades
• Additives - washing in detergent with whiteners and optical brighteners increases the protection.  Some washing products can contain UV absorbers

However the combination of all these factors makes the selection of the adequate sun protective clothing very complicated. For example a dark denim jacket may have a high SPF because it has a tight weave, it is thick and the indigo dye absorbs UV, even though it is made out of cotton.  Furthermore we need to balance the requirement of sun protection with comfort, practicality and fashion.  In this example you wouldn't want to wear an indigo denim jacket for a day at the beach.

To meet the needs of the consumer who wants UV protective clothing that is practical, special fabrics that block UV have been developed. These fabrics have been designed into clothing that is practical, increases protection and is fashionable.

In Australia, the most "sun aware" country in the world, the market for sun protection clothing is four times as large as the market for sun screens.  We predict that this trend will follow in other countries as well, especially as as fabric technology develops and designs become more fashionable.  Sun care clothing is especially applicable for children, as it is the ideal way to keep babies, toddlers and young children safe in the sun.