80% of people do not understand what SPF protection means

Clearer labelling is needed on sun creams, experts say, amid fears people do not understand the protection they provide.

A quarter of people did not know what the SPF rating displayed on each bottle stands for.

Meanwhile the majority were unaware the Sun Protection Factor indicates the level of protection offered against UVB rays alone, a Royal Pharmaceutical Survey (RPS) revealed.

Both UVA and UVB rays can cause skin damage and cancer.

But the SPF rating on a bottle of sunscreen refers only to protection afforded against UVB rays.

A separate star rating usually indicates the protection a cream will offer against UVA rays. 

The RPS poll revealed only eight per cent of people know the SPF rating refers to protection from UVB rays alone

More than 80 per cent of people believed the SPF was an indication of protection from both UVA and UVB rays (56 per cent), or they simply didn't understand what it stood for (25 per cent). 

Fewer than half of the 2,057 adults who took part in the YouGov survey last month said they always or often use sun protection.

Fifteen per cent of adults with children in their household admitted that they never checked the UVA rating.

Differences in labels are causing confusion among buyers, chief scientist for the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Professor Jayne Lawrence said, as she called for one clear label to be used across all products.

Professor Lawrence, said: 'This survey indicates that there is a huge amount of confusion around sunscreen labelling that is a barrier to effective sun protection.

'Clearly many consumers do not realise the SPF rating applies only to the amount of protection offered against UVB rays, not UVA rays - both of which can damage the skin and cause skin cancer.

'People should not have to pick their way through complicated dual ratings information to understand how sunscreen works and the amount of protection it potentially provides.

'We think it's time for sunscreen manufacturers to provide one easy to understand rating, based on a simple description of the total amount of sun protection offered: low, medium, high and very high protection.

'People now have largely got the message that they must protect their skin from the sun using sunscreen, along with other precautions such as covering up and keeping out of the sun during the hottest part of the day.

'What the RPS is calling for now is one uniform measure for all sun protection products, so pharmacists can provide easy to understand advice on the effectiveness of products and how they should be used.'

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