Difference Between a Moisturizing Lotion and an After-Sun?

After sun exposure, your skin feels tight and becomes very dry. All you want to do is moisturize it! But is your moisturizing lotion enough to repair all the damage caused by the sun? The question we often ask ourselves is: do you really need to apply an after-sun treatment, or will your regular moisturizer do the trick?

What does an after-sun contain?

A moisturizing treatment alone is not enough to repair your skin, and to understand why, just look at the composition of an after-sun, which contains ingredients not found in your regular moisturizer. An after-sun product, in addition to moisturizing agents like those in your moisturizer (most often urea, amino acids, sodium lactate, glycerol, etc.), also contains soothing agents such as allantoin, which help to calm and repair the skin.

The after-sun treatment will therefore protect the skin against free radicals and, as a result, delay aging. If you only use a moisturizer, don’t be surprised if your skin is damaged by the end of the summer!

So what should you do?

The ideal is to apply both products. The after-sun treatment repairs the skin after damage caused by UV rays, and your rich moisturizing lotion helps create a protective barrier. Be generous when applying both products and let them absorb slowly. Ideally, wait at least 5 good minutes between applications.

These two applications are only effective if you have properly protected your skin during sun exposure; otherwise, you may get sunburned, and after-sun care alone won’t be enough to fix it!

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