About the size of a 50 cent coin, this super-flexible, super-thin “second skin” patch has a connectable sensor that works in tandem with an app to take into account your hair and eye colour, UV sensitivity, GPS location and ozone concentration, and then measures your UV exposure over a five day period.
Colour us intrigued. We asked Guive Balooch, global vice president of L’Oreal’s Technology Incubator, to tell us more.
The patch is like a second skin. "Place it anywhere on your body (we recommend the back of the hand as it’s usually consistently sun-exposed), apply sunscreen and the patch will stay put for 3-5 days without having to remove it (you can shower, run, as per usual)."
You’ll need your phone. "So put it on, open the app, scan the heart, and it will tell you how much UV exposure you had throughout the day as well as at the time of the scan. The heart has 16 squares that change colour depending on the amount of sun exposure, so you get constant updates from a single patch for up to 5 days."
Australians can’t afford to not be sun smart. "Your relative proximity to the sun and the thin ozone layer means your land receives a high degree of UV radiation. There’s large proportion of the population with fairer, higher risk skin types due to their Northern European heritage, and you have an outdoors-focused lifestyle. So Australians need to be aware that UV rays are dangerous in any amount and exposure can occur directly and indirectly, like when it bounces off sand and water at the beach, which will almost double the dose for an already high risk individual."
About that blue heart design … "We chose a heart because we wanted to make our consumer experience fun and positive. This is an important cause but one that can be done with positivity and education."
"It takes just five sunburns to double your risk of melanoma"
So here's what to do: Press on the patch and download the app. Apply your SPF over the top and go about your life (sleeping, swimming, showering), scanning your patch throughout the day measure your UV exposure in real time.
Get your La Roche-Posay My UV Patch for free – yep, free! – with any La Roche-Posay sunscreen purchase from Priceline, Chemist Warehouse and Terry White Chemist, or online at laroche-posay.com.au/saveyourskin
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