If you love spending your summers going to the beach, working in the garden, or just sunbathing, you probably have a sun hat ready to go! However, perhaps you do not have a sunhat, or you have one but noticed it’s not providing you with much protection. What color sun hat is best?
The color of a sun hat matters, as it will give you much more protection from exposure to the sun. The best color sun hat to wear is navy blue or black, as darker colors can absorb the most UV rays. Darker sun hats will also keep you cooler on hot days because of their ability to absorb body heat.
Even if you know what color sun hat is best, you have to consider how important it is to wear a sun hat, and the materials can also play a significant role. Continue reading along with us as we discuss everything you must know about the importance of choosing a sun hat while keeping the color in mind!
Why Is It So Important To Choose The Right Color Sun Hat?
If you spend any amount of time in direct sun, regardless of the time of day or duration, it is crucial to be as safe as possible.
You need to do your best to minimize direct exposure to the sun’s strong and harmful ultraviolet rays by staying in the shade as much as you possibly can, wearing tons of sunscreen, and of course, using a suitable sun hat.
Sun safety is important because it only takes as little as fifteen minutes of unprotected sun exposure each day when the UV level is high enough to burn you. The World Health Organisation’s UV Index states that any UV level above six can become very dangerous to your skin.
If you have experienced sunburn before, and most of us have, you don’t need anyone to tell you how much it hurts. On top of how painful sunburn can become, it quickly becomes even a bigger deal, as it can also be life-threatening.
Choose Darker Colored Sun Hats
A study conducted in Spain has found that fabrics made of darker or more intense colors tended to have much better UV radiation protection than lighter colored colors.
Of all the colors tested on, dark blue seemed to offer the best and highest levels of UV protection. This makes navy blue the best single color to wear in the sun.
This strongly contrasts with the widespread belief that lighter colors, such as white or yellow, are the best performing colors in terms of UV protection.
You might be wondering why darker colors absorb the sun’s rays better than lighter colors. Well, while some of the results of these tests were conclusive, researchers were still not entirely sure why some of these colors performed better at preventing UV rays from penetrating some fabrics while not penetrating others.
The Cancer Council in Australia suggested that darker colors will absorb UV rays and help them block the rays from your skin.
This is why navy blue, as well as black and dark reds, are the best-known colors to offer you protection from the sun when compared to white or lighter colors from the same fabric.
What Material Sun Hat Is Best?
The weave and the weight of a sun hat are two of the most important factors when determining the effectiveness of sun protection.
We were told by our parents when we were younger that we should wear lighter colors because they stay the coolest in direct sun, but scientific studies have now proven that darker colors are much more effective in protecting us from the sun’s UV rays.
Just like the specific color can prevent the UV rays from reaching and damaging skin cells, and this is exactly the case when it comes to weaves and materials.
When it comes to choosing the ideal sunhat, you might be surprised to hear that the more artificial material you select, the better you will be protected.
Although we live in an everchanging modern world, where more and more people are becoming environmentally conscious and are worried about the types of fabrics used for apparel, it should be noted that synthetic materials have loads of benefits.
When it comes to offering you with the best protection from the sun, the first benefit of synthetic materials is that they do this job much better than others.
When you choose a sun hat, look for hats produced out of fabrics such as polyester and nylon. The sense the material your hat is constructed of, the better.
If you choose a material that is too thin, you also won’t be protected from the UV rays. Also, if you want to purchase a natural material, such as a hat that is made of straw, you have to make sure it has a lining of some sort.
If a hat does not have a proper lining, you will run the risk of still getting sunburned through the tiny holes in the weave.
You may also be happy to hear that manufacturers now offer a wide selection of hats made of UPF material. UPV stands for Ultraviolet Protection Factor, with the best rating being UPF50+.
However, you should never fully reply on UPF material to keep you safe from the sun, and you should choose a sun hat with a broad brim.
In simple terms, a black or navy UPV hat will not keep the sun’s rays from burning you, but it may play a significant part in keeping you from overheating on those hot summer days.
Conclusion
Always choose a sun hat that is a darker color for the best sun protection, and make sure it has a wide brim made of a synthetic material to ensure maximum protection from the sun.
Wearing dark colors is ultimately the best choice for sun protection, as it absorbs the sun’s intense UV rays. This doesn’t mean the dark colors will only absorb the heat from the sun, as a black or navy hat will also absorb the heat and keep it away from your body, keeping you cool!
Resources
- https://www.nbcnews.com/select/shopping/best-sun-hats-upf-ncna1235377
- https://www.cosmopolitan.com/style-beauty/fashion/g38539704/best-sun-hats/
- https://www.prevention.com/beauty/skin-care/g35482884/best-sun-hats/
