Sali Hughes on beauty: if your teen won’t wear sunscreen, try tempting them with these products

Since Covid, anti-science conspiracy theories have been circulated ever more widely on social media. The most worrying to dermatologists is a growing movement against sunscreen, the best and most evidenced precaution (beyond covering up with clothing or staying indoors) that we can take against skin cancers, including melanoma.

The conspiracy theorists claim that sunscreen causes cancer, rather than preventing it. Although there is no robust evidence to support this (and there is a mountain of clinical data showing the opposite), kids are inevitably most susceptible to the propaganda.

Teen beauty brand Indu recently conducted a survey which found that 60% of teenage girls say they’ve been sunburnt on their face, but only 27% wear sunscreen daily. Teenage boys (including my own) are even less likely to wear SPF. So, while there’s little we can do about the proliferation of online quackery, and the onus should be on social media platforms like TikTok, we can encourage our children to incorporate sunscreen into their daily routines.

A non-greasy, quickly absorbed, makeup-friendly, high-protection SPF will help. Indu’s own Everyday Hero SPF50 (£25) fits the bill. A lightweight synthetic sunscreen with a smooth, hydrated finish, it comes in a practical, backpack-friendly tube that should appeal to any gender.

Bubble skincare is designed and marketed at teens and tweens, but I like its Solar Mate Daily Mineral Sunscreen SPF30 (£19) myself. This is a physical sunscreen, using zinc (my own preference over titanium), that goes on almost clear and has a matt, but not chalky, finish. It will appease young people who have been (wrongly) convinced that mineral SPF is somehow superior to synthetics. It now comes in an additional tinted version (£19) that can easily substitute for light, school-friendly makeup.

The unaffordability of sunscreens is a hot topic in beauty. There’s no doubt that prohibitive VAT-liable SPF prices will negatively impact health for people on lower incomes. I admire the dermatologist-founded brand Altruist enormously for its mission to democratise UV protection. Its Oily Skin Cream SPF50 (£9.50) is terrific for teen skin. It combines mineral and synthetic ingredients, and has a dry-to-the-touch finish that sits nicely under makeup. At just shy of a tenner, it’s a comparatively inexpensive way to slot an essential healthcare product into a child’s routine.

Model: Scout Waddington. Photography assistant: Declan Slattery. Hair and makeup: Sarah Cherry