Do Tights Protect You from the Sun? Experts’ Suggestions

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Undoubtedly sunscreens protect your skin from UV rays and sunlight. But what about other parts of your body? Well, they get tanned too, and for this, they also need protection.

But we all know it’s impossible to apply sunscreens to our whole body. Instead, what we can do is wear sun-protective clothes or tights. But the question is, do tights protect you from the Sun?

Yes, for your information, tights protect your skin from UltraViolet (UV) and sun rays and prevent your skin from getting tanned. Tights with UltraViolet Protection Factor (UPF) 50 or higher rated fabrics protect and block sun rays. However, it’s recommended to use both sunscreens and UPF 50+ fabric clothes for better protection.

Although tights are effective against sun rays and can block them, a few factors need to be considered to get the best results. To help you with that, we’re with this detailed guide.

So keep reading…

Do Tights Protect You from the Sun?

If you’re wearing tight or inner wear with a UPF 50 or above rating, it can protect your skin from the Sun.

Although we know sunscreens are the no 1 choice for protecting our skin and preventing tan, you might ask, why not use sunscreen instead of tights?

Yes, sunscreens are effective against UV rays, but the problem is that most sunscreens need to be applied every 3 hours. As we’re talking about protecting every part of our skin alongside skin, it’s not possible to apply sunscreen on all the exterior parts so frequently. Besides, it’s a big hassle too!

So to keep this hassle away, dermatologists suggest tights with UPF 50 or above as they’re proven to protect your exterior parts against Sun and harmful UV rays and prevent your skin from getting tanned.

But the question is, what is UPF?

UPF stands for Ultraviolet Protection Factor,  a parameter measuring fabric quality and its capability to protect skin from sun rays. It works almost like SPF (Sun Protecting Factors) in sunscreens. But the only difference is that UPF is used for fabrics.

When you see a tight or innerwear with UPF 50 or other ratings, it means the amount of UV or sun rays penetrating the cloth. Fabrics or clothes with UPF 50 or more block more than 98% of UV rays and only allow 2% of rays to penetrate. And this type of tights can help prevent tans by blocking almost all the sun and UV rays.

For comparison, the normal T-shirts we wear have a UPF 5 rating. So sun rays can easily pass through it and we can get tanned. So we believe now you understand the difference and significance between higher and lower UPF ratings.

The bottom line is, yes, tights can prevent your skin from getting tanned, but you need to choose the innerwear with UPF 50 or above. Moreover, applying sunscreen is also a must if you want zero tans.

Lastly, if you’re worried about your fashion sense, highly fashionable and gorgeous tights and innerwear are available in the market. These not only protect your skin but also give a stunning look to you and can be matched with any outfit!

How To Choose Tights for Protection Against the Sun?

Whether it’s sunscreen or UV-preventing tights, people wear them because they don’t want to get tanned. So if you’re one of those who doesn’t like to have tan skin and are looking for solutions, this part is for you.

But the questions are, how to know which tights are UV rays preventing? Can all tights prevent sun rays? What are the criteria for choosing a UV protecting tight?

Well, if you’ve also wondered the same, you’re at the right place.

Here are a few factors that you need to consider before buying a sun-protecting tight-

·UPF Rating

The first and foremost thing you should consider is the UPF rating. As we already said, fabrics with UPF 50 or above can easily protect your skin from the Sun as they prevent 98% of sun rays.

However, it’s impossible to know the UPF rating in some cases as some fabrics or tights don’t come with this rating.

In that case, you can use the rule of thumb. For this, check whether light can pass through the tights. The fabric is good enough to protect against UV rays if it’s opaque.

·Fabric

We recommend you go for polyester or nylon fabrics as they can reflect the UV rays and prevent skin tan.

·Density or Thickness

The density of the fabric is proportional to UPF. So try to purchase a tight with a dense or thick fabric.

·Color

Well, you might not believe it, but color plays a crucial factor in protecting against UV rays and skin tanning. Normally dark colors like black and navy blue soak up the sun and UV rays. As a result, the lights cannot penetrate through the tights and harm your skin.’

Besides, the darker color inner wears are also opaque in most cases, whereas light can easily pass through light color clothes.

FAQ

· Are tights suitable for summer?

Ans: Absolutely yes. Tights are not as dense or thick as they look. Instead, they’re made with good quality fabrics with good air ventilation. So they can be worn in any season, including summer.

· Does UPF wash out of clothing?

Ans: No, the UPF rating doesn’t wash out of clothing. But after several washes or the cloth gets worn out, the fabrics get compromised, and UV rays might penetrate through the tights or cloths. As a result, the sun-protecting capacity gets lowered.

Conclusion

Although sun-protecting tights with high UPF are overall good for protecting UV rays and sun tans, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use sunscreen.

The best way to fight against sun tan is to use sunscreen and tights at the same time.Reading so far, we believe we already got the answer to your question- “do tights protect you from the Sun,” right? So what are you waiting for? Grab a tight for you this summer, and enjoy!