If I take benzoyl peroxide how sensitive am I to the sun?

[Jwp1017]

If I take benzoyl peroxide can I go outside for 30 minutes in the sun without sunscreen? Can I have the blinds in my house open all day with the sun shining in without sunscreen and not cause damage to my skin? Can I go for a 2 hour drive in my can without sunscreen and be fine? Exactly how sensitive does benzoyl peroxide make my skin? Thanks!

[Sara_MHModerator]

Hello and welcome to the forum.  We appreciate your question.  Are you talking about the topical ointment?  Are you using this for acne?  Certainly wearing sunscreen would protect you.   Using SPF 30 or higher would be a good choice.  Always check with your doctor if you have any issues.

[Jwp1017]

Yeah topical.

[Paxiled]

It does make skin more sensitive to sun.  How sensitive probably depends on how well it's doing what it's supposed to do, which is cause part of your skin protection to peel off so you have less acne.  It's a tradeoff.  If you believe this tradeoff is worth it, then use sunscreen.  How this will affect Vitamin D absorption I don't know, you might want to find out if you need to supplement with it.  

[Jwp1017]

It's 2.5% benzoyl peroxide. So if you were to guess can I go outside for 30 minutes in the sun without sunscreen? Can I have the blinds in my house open all day with the sun shining in without sunscreen and not cause damage to my skin? Can I go for a 2 hour drive in my can without sunscreen and be fine?

[Paxiled]

Always check with your doctor if you have any issues.  I can't say it any better.  But I wouldn't worry about being in the car or opening the blinds.  I personally, and this is just me, if I really loved the sun, would find a different way to deal with my acne assuming you haven't exhausted all other avenues of doing that.  When I was young, doctors used to give us tetracycline for acne, which also caused sun sensitivity.  Of course, they never told us that.  It also caused all the problems antibiotics do.  You know what else deals with acne?  Sun.  Dietary changes.  Depending on the cause and severity of your acne, of course.  I grew up in a place full of sunshine, and that just burned the acne right off until I outgrew it.  We didn't worry about skin cancer back then, of course.  You don't say if you adult acne or teenage acne, so we don't know the cause or severity.  Neither are we experts here on your medication.  But there are more ways to deal with it than just one.  Peace.