BALEAF Men’s UPF 50+ Long Sleeve Sun Protection Shirts
I almost never wear short sleeve shirts when I’m working outside. Long sleeve shirts prevent sunburn as well as contact with poison ivy and other noxious plants that can cause an allergic reaction on your skin. They also provide a modicum of protection against thorns from the wild black raspberries that like to snag my arms while I’m mowing up against the treeline. I like to come in from spending the day working outside without the foreboding knowledge that I got too much sun, that I will have a rash that is going to last for weeks, or pulling thorns out of my forearms.
The BALEAF UPF 50+ shirts are perfect for fishing, hiking, sailing, running, hanging out by the pool, and working outdoors. Did you read “UPF” and wonder whether I meant to write “SPF”? UPF stands for Ultraviolet Protective Factor and indicates how much of the sun’s radiation (both UVA and UVB) penetrates the fabric and reaches the skin. A fabric with a UPF of 50 (like these shirts) will only let 1/50 of the sun’s radiation pass through to the skin. SPF is used to rate effectiveness of sunscreens, and only takes UVB rays into account. The bottom line is that the fabric in these BALEAF shirts are very effective in preventing sunburn, premature skin aging, and even skin cancer.
After owning and extensively wearing both, I can say that these BALEAF shirts are comparable to the long-sleeve Colombia UPF fishing shirts that cost three times as much. I have switched from the Colombia shirts to these for their price and versatility. The Columbia shirts are nice and do have a more “outdoors” feel to them, but I wouldn’t wear one to the pool and couldn’t imagine running in one because the don’t have the range of motion or the fit that the BALEAF shirts do.
The non-see-through fabric wicks away moisture and actually keeps you cooler than if you were wearing a short sleeve shirt because it’s so effective in keeping the direct sun off of your skin. These shirts breathe effectively and dry out quickly when they get wet.
These shirts are available in many different attractive colors. Some colors are available in a short sleeve version as well. I stay away from darker colors for my outdoor clothing, specifically blue, as it attracts more deer flies, which are a real challenge where we live during June and July. The lighter colors do show more dirt, but they also keep you cooler.
In addition to wearing long pants and these shirts, I also wear a boonie hat and these UV/dust face shields, which I reviewed in detail here.
