Experts offer advice on choosing sun-protective clothing

We've all been told to wear light-colored clothing in the sun, but did you know that a plain white T-shirt is comparable only to an SPF 8 sunscreen?

That means that your skin, even while covered up, is in danger because SPF 8 is not considered strong enough to spend a long time in the sun.

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Dr. Sherry Ingraham of Advanced Dermatology said you need to apply SPF 30 or higher sunscreen every 80 minutes, and when it comes children, it doesn't have to be a fight.

“I find that kids love putting it on themselves, so if you can find a product your child will apply themselves, you're winning half the battle,” Ingraham said.

Eden and Ellie  prefer applying sprays and sticks over traditional sunscreen, and they will do it themselves.

Their mother dressed them in UV-protection clothing, so most of their upper bodies are protected by their clothes.

“This is a cute outfit from Gymboree. If you can get them to wear a sun shirt, then you're not going to be chasing them around, reapplying that sunscreen to their upper body, so you want to stack the cards in your favor,” Ingraham said.

Ingraham's favorite brand of sunscreen for children and adults is Coolibar.

“We like zinc and titanium in sunscreen, of course, because these are physical sunscreens,” Ingraham said. “Well, (Coolibar has) these same components built into the fabric ... they ensure their product is water resistant, sun resistant, chlorine resistant for the life of the product.”

That means that the sun protection will be effective as many times as you sweat, swim and wash the clothing.

“They also make sun sleeves, and these are important for men who play golf, for women who play tennis, or when you're driving in the car. People don't realize that the ultraviolet penetrates through the car window. You can put these on, wear a T-shirt while you're playing golf, but put these on your arms to protect them,” Ingraham said.

Athleta, Lands End, Target and other clothing stores carry sun shirts that promise to work like an SPF, but Ingraham warns that the protection may wear off as you wash the clothes.