Sun protection is an important element of health, especially
in these summer months. UV rays, specifically UVB rays, are agents involved
with skin damage and skin cancer. But with companies loading up sun screen
with harmful chemicals how can we ensure we are getting sun protection and
nothing else?
The Environmental Working Group's 2011 sunscreen guide can
help you determine which sunscreens are unsafe. The group recommends just 20
percent of the 600-plus sport sunscreens it evaluated. For a product to score
high marks, it needed to be free of potentially harmful chemicals. Here are the
EWG’s 4 red flags for sunscreens.
1. No Oxybenzone - Sixty-five percent of non-mineral sunscreens on the U.S. market contain oxybenzone. This chemical penetrates your skin in large amounts, potentially triggering allergic reactions. Oxybenzone is also a potential endocrine-disrupting chemical that can cause hormone disruption and cell damage. This isn’t a chemical I want on myself, let alone my children.
2. No Vitamin A (Retinyl Palmitate) - The sunscreen industry uses vitamin A in its formulations because it is an anti-oxidant that is thought to slow skin aging. However, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) study found that a form of vitamin A, retinyl palmitate, when used in sunscreen and exposed to sunlight may actually speed the development of skin lesions and tumors. The EWG recommends that consumers avoid products containing vitamin A, retinyl palmitate and retinol. And it’s not justsunscreens to be aware of, Vitamin A, retinyl palmitate and retinol are found in skin lotions, lip sticks and lip sunscreens too.
3. Inadequate UVA Protection - The EWG analysis found that more than 60 percent of products reviewed provide inadequate UVA protection and are actually so ineffective that they would not be approved in the European market. There are two primary types of UV rays from sunlight that you need to be concerned with, the vitamin-D-producing UVB rays and the skin-damaging UVA light. Both UVA and UVB can cause tanning and burning, although UVB does so far more rapidly. UVA, however, penetrates your skin more deeply than UVB and may be a much more important factor in photoaging, wrinkles and skin cancers. Since UVA's are inherently more damaging and persistently high during all daylight hours, wearing a sunscreen that doesn't protect you from UVA is going to give you virtually no benefit and be detrimental to your overall health. So it's important to understand that if you're using sunscreen, you need to be certain you are actually getting UVA protection.
4. Too High SPF or in Spray Form - Higher SPF sunscreens (SPF 50+) are not intrinsically harmful, however there's evidence that the higher protection level gives people a misleading sense of security, encouraging them to stay in the sun longer than they should. In reality, research suggests that people using high-SPF sunscreens get the same or similar exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays as those using lower-SPF products. Spray-on sunscreens (or powders) were advised against because potentially toxic particles are released into the air, making them easy to breathe in. Which sunscreen is the safest? After the analysis was complete, EWG concluded: "The best sunscreen is a hat and a shirt. No chemicals to absorb through the skin, no questions about whether they work." Cotton clothing provides about SPF 15. SPF (sun protection factor) 15 means it would take your skin 15 times longer to get red than if you were wearing no protection at all.
1. No Oxybenzone - Sixty-five percent of non-mineral sunscreens on the U.S. market contain oxybenzone. This chemical penetrates your skin in large amounts, potentially triggering allergic reactions. Oxybenzone is also a potential endocrine-disrupting chemical that can cause hormone disruption and cell damage. This isn’t a chemical I want on myself, let alone my children.
2. No Vitamin A (Retinyl Palmitate) - The sunscreen industry uses vitamin A in its formulations because it is an anti-oxidant that is thought to slow skin aging. However, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) study found that a form of vitamin A, retinyl palmitate, when used in sunscreen and exposed to sunlight may actually speed the development of skin lesions and tumors. The EWG recommends that consumers avoid products containing vitamin A, retinyl palmitate and retinol. And it’s not justsunscreens to be aware of, Vitamin A, retinyl palmitate and retinol are found in skin lotions, lip sticks and lip sunscreens too.
3. Inadequate UVA Protection - The EWG analysis found that more than 60 percent of products reviewed provide inadequate UVA protection and are actually so ineffective that they would not be approved in the European market. There are two primary types of UV rays from sunlight that you need to be concerned with, the vitamin-D-producing UVB rays and the skin-damaging UVA light. Both UVA and UVB can cause tanning and burning, although UVB does so far more rapidly. UVA, however, penetrates your skin more deeply than UVB and may be a much more important factor in photoaging, wrinkles and skin cancers. Since UVA's are inherently more damaging and persistently high during all daylight hours, wearing a sunscreen that doesn't protect you from UVA is going to give you virtually no benefit and be detrimental to your overall health. So it's important to understand that if you're using sunscreen, you need to be certain you are actually getting UVA protection.
4. Too High SPF or in Spray Form - Higher SPF sunscreens (SPF 50+) are not intrinsically harmful, however there's evidence that the higher protection level gives people a misleading sense of security, encouraging them to stay in the sun longer than they should. In reality, research suggests that people using high-SPF sunscreens get the same or similar exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays as those using lower-SPF products. Spray-on sunscreens (or powders) were advised against because potentially toxic particles are released into the air, making them easy to breathe in. Which sunscreen is the safest? After the analysis was complete, EWG concluded: "The best sunscreen is a hat and a shirt. No chemicals to absorb through the skin, no questions about whether they work." Cotton clothing provides about SPF 15. SPF (sun protection factor) 15 means it would take your skin 15 times longer to get red than if you were wearing no protection at all.
Reference:
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/06/06/do-you-know-which-sunscreen-products-to-avoid.aspx
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