For use before you jet off on your holliers, Academie's Sun To Drink product is the newest member of their Bronz’ Express range and is a 'nutriseutical' that you down in the run up to sun exposure. Using beta carotene as its active ingredient, it works to prepare your melanocytes (the pigment-laden cells which supply melanin, the doofer than defines the colour of your skin) for the rays to come and helps you to tan quicker. The theory is, you then need to spend less time exposing yourself to harmful UV rays to come away with the colour you desire.
But it's not a substitute for using sunscreen once you're on the beach, and nor should it be. So while it can help with the prep-process, during your sun holiday remember to always slap on your factor 15+ and avoid exposing your skin in the middle of the day when rays are at their strongest.
Sun to Drink comes in little glass vials that you snap to open (you need to break both ends to release the orange liquid inside) and it can be drunk as-is or diluted with water. It's got a mango-y-organge-y flavour that's not dissimilar to Berocca or a fizzy multivitamin - not delicious by any manner of means, but perfectly drinkable.
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The period you use it for is determined by your skintype - so if you're super-duper pale and sensitive, take one a day for 20 days before you go and for ten days while you're away; if you're fair, down it for 15 days before and five days during your holiday, and if you're dark-skinned and tan easily, then drink it up for ten days in advance.
Buy now for €16.95 from salons and pharmacies nationwide, including branches of Unicare.
