Rash guards have been used for decades. Its history if one would care to consider finding out, originated somewhere in Australia for the primary use of people who are fond of surfing. The trend of its use since then became quickly popular that people nowadays whether they are surfers or not are likely to own rash guards themselves and probably use them as casual wear.
Most people who have never seen rash guards would tend to think that they are strictly meant for water related sports as it has traditionally been labeled as an advanced athletic swimwear. The primary function upon wearing it revolves purely on the protection of one's skin against the following.
As the name implies, rash guards are called that way because they are to be used to prevent the manifestations of skin rashes. Now these kinds of rashes are not what you commonly see on babies who develop diaper rashes which are often a result of prolonged irritation from urine and fecal contact on the skin. The rashes that rash guards prevent are the ones that commonly caused by the contact of the surfer's skin on the surfboard wax which often is accompanied with a significant amount of sand from the beach. There are also instances by which a skin rash can occur from the mere impact of saltwater waves against the skin with a considerable amount of force.
The use of rash guards has also been known to be used as protective covering against prolonged exposure from the sun. Normally a lot of people would want to enjoy sunny weathers during summer with the use of sun block lotions as a precautionary measure to prevent burns and skin cancer as well. Rash guards often contain UV protective factor 50 and up by which the higher the number, the better is the protection against the sun's devastating rays.
With the development of newer technology, newer designs of wet suit have been created to replace the rash guards when it comes to activities that are directly related to water. Today, most people would often wear this kind of apparel not because they want protection from the formation of skin rashes, but more on protecting oneself from ultraviolet radiation. Traditionally, the earlier version of rash guards really looks identical with wet suits; thus it would look weird for some to wear one when just strolling outdoors. But because of newer designs, they now look more like normal t-shirt that is skin tight making it look like a body fit shirt that can easily be mistaken as casual wear with added protective benefits.
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