What is UPF?
UPF stands for Ultraviolet Protection Factor and is the rating given to clothing for its broad-spectrum protection against both UVA and UVB rays.
SPF in sunscreen measures only effectiveness against UVB rays, while UPF measures protection against the full spectrum of ultraviolet radiation.
All UPF 50+ clothing offers broad-spectrum protection that blocks 98% of UVA and UVB rays.
What is SPF?
SPF (Sun Protection Factor) is the rating given to lotions, liquids, sprays, and solid sunblock and sunscreen products.
SPF only measures the product’s effectiveness against UVB rays and how much time you can stay in the sun before getting burned.
Experts recommend an SPF 30 or higher, particularly if you are fair skinned, light-eyed, have freckles and red hair or have a family history of skin cancer.
While all skin tones can be affected by UV rays, lighter skin tones are recorded to have the highest incidence of skin cancer.
Why UPF clothing?
It is more cost-effective than sunscreen products since you don’t need to re-apply every few hours. According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, UPF clothing can protect your skin against UVA and UVB radiation and decrease the chance of skin cancer and sunburn, especially in summer.
Why SPF clothing?
The term “SPF Clothing” does not exist! SPF stands for Sun Protection Factor, and it is only used to rate a sunscreen's ability to protect against UVB rays. UPF is a rating used for clothing & fabrics that protect you from both UVA & UVB rays.
What is UPF clothing? What is UPF 50+ fabric?
UPF (Sun protective) clothing is clothing specifically designed for sun protection and is produced with fabrics rated for its level of ultraviolet protection.
What does the rating of UPF clothing mean?
The UPF rating is a factor to measure the UVA and UVB rays that will reach the skin. For example, 50 UPF means 1/50 of the sun’s rays will reach the skin. The higher the UPF, the lower the radiation and harm is transmitted to the skin.
What does your “+” in UPF 50+ stand for?
When we test our fabrics and clothing, our ultraviolet protection factor far exceeds the protection level of 50.
But, because the standard for certification stops at UPF 50, we indicate that we go above and beyond by using the “+” symbol, so you know our clothes can block more than 98% of UV rays.
Does UPF clothing work?
Yes! While technically all clothing can be considered sun-protective if it covers up the skin, sun protection clothing carries a UPF rating that's designed to provide more protection.
Is UPF clothing safe?
Yes, but be aware that some UPF brands coat their garments with chemicals to protect from the sun, but those wash out and can be harmful to your skin and the environment.
What are UVA rays and UVB rays?
UVA (aging) rays penetrate deep into the dermis, the skin’s thickest layer, while UVB (burning) rays are primarily responsible for premature skin aging, brown spots, wrinkling, and blotching.
UVA rays have been shown to cause skin damage at the cellular level and may cause a great deal of internal damage, such as organ problems.
Unprotected exposure can lead to premature skin aging and wrinkling (photoaging), and suppression of the immune system.
UVB rays are more intense rays that usually burn the superficial layers of your skin and damage the outer layers of the skin. UVB rays play a key role in the development of skin cancer.
Why do the clothes all have long sleeves? Won’t my child get too hot?
Wearing long sleeves is ideal when it comes to sun protection. UPF 50+ Clothing Sun Protective wear is like sunblock for your skin – without the mess! Our clothing is ultra lightweight and moisture-wicking, so our long sleeve shirts are not hot or uncomfortable.
Doesn’t regular clothing block harmful rays?
Regular clothing does have an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 5, but that is not enough to protect against the sun’s harmful rays.
Does your fabric itch
No! It is soft and made of natural fibers – perfect for those with the most sensitive skin.
Is it comfortable?
UPF 50+ Clothing, Sun protective romper is so comfortable for babies. Our customers often tell us their children ask to sleep in the clothes, too! Bamboo, one of our primary fabrics, is super soft.
What about when kids sweat?
Our fabric is naturally hypoallergenic, odor resistant, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and more durable than traditional cotton shirts. Sweat is no problem – our fabric absorbs 4 times more moisture than cotton and yet is ultra lightweight, perfect for everyday wear.
UPF 50+ Clothing Company offers toxin-free, eczema-safe, fashion-friendly, sun protective garments...!
Why is UPF 50+ Clothing different from other brands?
UPF 50+ Clothing is different because we do not dip our fabrics into chemicals for the UPF protection. Therefore, the UPF protection does not wash away with launderings. We test our products by batch, by color, both wet and dry. This means we can give you UPF levels on every color in our collection.
Will UPF 50+ Clothing protects me from the sun?
Our tops, leggings, hoodie, shorts, dresses and accessories have a minimum UPF of 50, and block a minimum of 98% of the sun’s rays. Because our garments undergo extensive testing, we know there is no sun going through our garments.
Do I need to wear sunscreen if I'm wearing UPF 50+ Clothing?
You will only need to wear sunscreen in your exposed areas. It is important to protect your skin with sunblock, a hat, sunglasses and lip balm.
What is UPF clothing?
The Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) indicates how much UV radiation (both UVB and UVA) a fabric allows to reach your skin. For example, a UPF 50 fabric blocks 98 percent of the sun’s rays and allows two percent (1/50th) to penetrate, thus reducing your exposure risk significantly.
Ultraviolet protection factor, or UPF, ratings are to fabrics what sun protection factor (SPF) ratings are to sunscreen: They indicate what fraction of the sun’s ultraviolet rays can penetrate a given fabric.
How is UPF different from SPF?
UPF measures the amount of UV radiation that can penetrate fabric and reach your skin. Sun Protection Factor, or SPF, is based on the time it takes for UV-exposed skin to redden; if you burn after 20 minutes, if used correctly, an SPF 15 sunscreen may protect your skin 15 times longer.
Another important distinction: UPF measures both UVB and UVA rays, while SPF measures only UVB.
Does my regular shirt protect me from UV rays?
Most of us only apply sunscreen to our skin that is directly exposed to the sun. We assume that the clothes we’re wearing protect us from the sun’s harmful UV rays, so there’s no need for sunscreen on covered areas. But could we be making an incorrect assumption? Maybe – not all clothes block out as much UV radiation as you may think. Some brands offer designated sun-protective clothing, and some offer sun-protective laundry aids, but to get the most protection out of our ordinary clothes, it’s best to opt for dark, tightly stitched fabrics.
Does UPF wash out of clothing?
Do cotton t-shirts provide sun protection?
No. It is important to understand that an everyday white cotton T-shirt has a UPF of only about 5. As a rule of thumb, the more intense the hue, the better protection the clothing will provide.
What is melanoma?
Melanoma is a type of skin cancer that develops when melanocytes (the cells that give the skin its tan or brown color) start to grow out of control.
Cancer starts when cells in the body begin to grow out of control. Cells in nearly any part of the body can become cancer, and can then spread to other areas of the body.
Melanoma is much less common than some other types of skin cancers. But melanoma is more dangerous because it’s much more likely to spread to other parts of the body if not caught and treated early.
What causes melanoma?
Melanoma occurs when something goes wrong in the melanin-producing cells (melanocytes) that give color to your skin.
Normally, skin cells develop in a controlled and orderly way — healthy new cells push older cells toward your skin's surface, where they die and eventually fall off. But when some cells develop DNA damage, new cells may begin to grow out of control and can eventually form a mass of cancerous cells.
Just what damages DNA in skin cells and how this leads to melanoma isn't clear. It's likely that a combination of factors, including environmental and genetic factors, causes melanoma. Still, doctors believe exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun and from tanning lamps and beds is the leading cause of melanoma.
UV light doesn't cause all melanomas, especially those that occur in places on your body that don't receive exposure to sunlight. This indicates that other factors may contribute to your risk of melanoma.
I thought my clothes were protecting me, why is my exposed skin tan around my clothes?
Your clothes, without sun protective technology, offer minimal protection. A typical shirt may provide a UPF rating of 5 to 10, however if that same shirt gets wet the UPF factor drops even lower. These low UPF ratings are insufficient to spend the day in the sun or under grow lights. Colors play a role in the UPF rating as well. Darker colors offer a better block than lighter colors; thicker fabrics and tighter weaves also offer better protection. With UPF advanced technology, fabrics are now softer and light weight. Depending on the UPF rating, sun protective clothing can protect you from 15 to 50+. Only clothes with a UPF rating of 15 to 50+ may be labelled as sun protective.
What is the difference between SPF and UPF?
SPF is familiar to most, known as Sun Protection Factor, this rates sunscreens, makeup, and other sun protective products. It measures the amount of time it takes for sun exposed skin to burn or redden. The SPF number gives you an idea of how long you can stay in the sun without burning. Dermatologists recommend an SPF of 15 or greater with a broad spectrum of UVA and UVB, containing zinc oxide. UPF is known as Ultraviolet Protection Factor which indicates how much of the sun's UV radiation is absorbed. It measures the amount of UV radiation that penetrates a fabric and reaches the skin. It is a measure of total ultraviolet radiation blocked, both UVB and UVA. For example UPF 50 allows only 1/50th best explained as 1% of the UVA/UVB penetrates fabric.
What is the difference between UVA and UVB?
UVA is a long ultraviolet wavelength from the sun or light. UVA rays are the "aging" rays in the UV spectrum. This wavelength may have a greater potential to cause damage, as these rays penetrate the skin deeper. UVB are the "burning" rays in the UV spectrum responsible for the skin's color change. Both these UV rays are capable of causing significant damage to the human body. Overall light radiation precautions are always necessary, with special awareness for the time of day you are in the sun or the grow room's current light spectrum.
I have dark skin; do I need any protection?
Yes, everyone needs to protect themselves against harmful UV, Visible and Infrared light radiation. No one is immune from the effects, regardless of skin tone.
What about my Vitamin D?
Most people can easily meet the daily requirements by including fatty fish, eggs, D-fortified dairy products and vitamin supplements.
Why do the clothes all have long sleeves? Won’t my child get too hot?
Wearing long sleeves is ideal when it comes to sun protection. UPF 50+ Clothing Sun Protective romper is like sunblock for your skin – without the mess! Our clothing is ultra lightweight and moisture-wicking, so our long sleeve shirts are not hot or uncomfortable.
Doesn’t regular clothing block harmful rays?
Regular clothing does have an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 5, but that is not enough to protect against the sun’s harmful rays. Our UPF 50+ Clothing has you covered with our UPF of 50!
Does your fabric itch
No! It is soft and made of natural fibers – perfect for those with the most sensitive skin. It is also tag-less.
Is it comfortable?
The UPF 50+ Clothing Sun protective romper is so comfortable. Our customers often tell us their children ask to sleep in the clothes, too! Bamboo, one of our primary fabrics, is super soft.
What about when kids sweat?
Our fabric is naturally hypoallergenic, odor resistant, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and more durable than traditional cotton shirts. Sweat is no problem – our fabric absorbs 4 times more moisture than cotton and yet is ultra lightweight, perfect for everyday wear.
UPF 50+ Clothing Company offers toxin-free, eczema-safe, fashion-friendly, sun protective products!