Infrared Radiation and Your Skin: Should You Care?
The heat part of sunlight has its own effects.
Infrared accounts for roughly half of the solar energy reaching Earth's surface, and IR-A can penetrate skin more deeply than UV.
Dermatologists caution that while UVA and UVB remain the proven drivers of skin cancer and aging, lab evidence that infrared-A generates free radicals has made antioxidants a reasonable complement to sunscreen rather than a replacement.
Questions we get a lot
Does sunscreen protect against infrared radiation?
Most sunscreens are designed and tested for UVB and UVA, not infrared, so the SPF number tells you nothing about IR. Some formulas add antioxidants that may help offset the free radicals infrared can generate, but the strongest, best-proven benefit of sunscreen is still its UV protection.
How does infrared differ from UVA and UVB?
UVB has the shortest wavelengths and causes sunburn at the surface; UVA penetrates deeper and drives aging; infrared has even longer wavelengths, is felt as heat, and reaches deepest of all. UVA and UVB are the established causes of skin cancer and photoaging, while infrared's role is still being studied.
r/SkincareScience: 'Does sunscreen do anything against infrared, or just UV?'