Clean Mineral Sunscreens
I’ve decided that this is the hill I will die on. Before I go into my personal reasons why I only use Mineral Sunscreen, CLEAN mineral sunscreen, this article clip easily describes the different types of sunscreens.
For now, if you are concerned about health effects, the safest choice is a so-called “mineral” or “physical” sunscreen with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, dermatologists say. Those are only sunscreen ingredients that the FDA says are “generally recognized as safe and effective.”
While chemical sunscreens act like sponges and absorb ultraviolet light, “a physical sunscreen acts like a shield,” Gohara explains. It sits on top of your skin and deflects UVA and UVB rays away from your body.
The main things to note: Mineral sunscreen sits physically on the skin while chemical sunscreen absorbs into the skin. Aka your body is absorbing chemicals. That should be enough to spook ya but here is the study confirming your body absorbs the chemical sunscreen active ingredients.
The article goes on to state the main ingredient to avoid is oxybenzone after this study found that rats exposed to this chemical were likely to develop thyroid tumors. Yikes! Also should note, oxybenzone is a hormone disruptor known to lower testosterone levels in boys and increased risk of breast cancer. No biggie right?!?!
In general, I’m somewhat skeptical about chemical sunscreen because how is something made from chemicals known to cause cancer going to somehow save you from skin cancer? #criticalthinking
The one complaint I always hear from folks about mineral sunscreen is that it leaves a white residue and I hear ya - that sucks but to some degree, you almost can’t avoid that without not having protection. I know it’s something the market is trying hard to fix but be careful of some companies saying it’s mineral sunscreen but rubs in clear. DO YOUR HOMEWORK.
Let’s be real - as a busy mom - no one is remembering a list of ingredients they can’t even spell! The easiest way to check a product is through the EWG website or app. EWG ranks chemicals based on their toxicity levels. 1-2 levels being the safest, 10 being the worst. You type in the product to search their database and it shows you the level of bad or good chemicals that are in the product. It’s not perfect, sometimes it doesn’t have the product but I’ve been using it for almost 8 years and more and more products are added daily. Currently, my goal is to only purchase products with safety ratings of 3 or less on the EWG rankings. Maybe one day, all my products will be in the green zone (1-2 ratings) on EWG but for now, I try my best!
After the Banana Boat sunscreen recall this summer, people are becoming more aware of the chemicals found in chemical sunscreens. Though the recall only mentions one toxic chemical, below is a more comprehensive list of the toxic chemicals to avoid in your sunscreen, as well as the EWG rating & health problems the chemical causes. (Courtesy of Suntribe.)
Should be noted that chemicals in various forms give off different toxicity levels. An example of this is zinc oxide, my go-to mineral sunscreen chemical. In lotions, it has a rating of 1 in toxicity, but in powder or spray form it’s a 3 in safety ratings. Hence some of the ratings below show a range.
Active Ingredients:
1) OXYBENZONE / BENZOPHENONE-3 (BP-3)
Endocrine disruptor: mimics estrogen, found in the bloodstream, linked to male infertility
Inhibits the growth of coral larvae and causes coral bleaching
2) OCTINOXATE / OCTYLMETHOXYCINNAMATE (OMZ)
3) HOMOSALATE
Potential endocrine disruptor: disrupts reproductive hormones
Impairs the growth of marine wildlife, e.g. sea orchids and algae
Likely to cause birth defects in humans and fish and not recommended for pregnant women
4) OCTISALATE / ETHYLHEXYL SALICYLATE
5) OCTOCRYLENE / 2-ETHYLHEXYL ESTER
High rate of photocontact allergies: can result in irritations and eczema when skin comes in contact with both Octocrylene and sunlight
First evidence of bioaccumulation, e.g. accumulates in brain and liver of zebrafish affecting developmental processes and organ development
6) AVOBENZONE
Not photostable on its own: breaks down in contact with UV light, producing ecotoxins
Therefore often combined with stabilizers like Octisalate which is mentioned higher up on this list
Inactive ingredients:
7) PARABENS - must of us know this one already!
Parabens can be found in a majority of cosmetics. They’re mainly used to extend the shelf life of your products by preventing the growth of bacteria. It’s sounds great, however, they are also associated with breast cancer, as they may affect the mechanisms of breast cells. There are a few parabens which have already been banned in some countries (find more details on ingredient bans below), however, parabens like ethylparaben, methylparaben and other ingredients that end with -paraben are still approved for use in cosmetics.
8) BEMOTRIZINOL (ALSO KNOWN AS TINOSORB S)
Bemotrizinol is commonly used in sunscreen since it can absorb both UVA and UVB rays. It’s approved in Europe and Australia, however, the FDA in the USA rejected several pending applications of Bemotrizinol previously as there is not sufficient information to prove that it’s officially safe and effective.
9) RETINYL PALMITATE
Retinyl Palmitate is a form of vitamin A, which may result in skin damage and cancer. There is evidence that suggests that it may accelerate the growth of cancer cells when used on the skin under sunlight. A study from the Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food Safety stated that excessive vitamin A can cause health problems such as liver damage, hair loss, and osteoporosis (weakening of bones).
10) TITANIUM DIOXIDE (NANO)
Titanium Dioxide in nano size can be found in many cosmetics, including sunscreen. Nevertheless it’s classified as a possible risk to humans based on animal inhalation experiments. In its powdered or spray form, such as sunscreen sprays or SPF powders, and eyeshadows, it is considered potentially carginogenic.
11) METHYLISOTHIAZOLINONE (MI)
Studies suggest that MI may be neurotoxic and cause allergic reactions. The common usage of MI in sunscreen raises concerns since sunscreen users are very likely to be exposed to significant concentrations of it.
Most importantly, here are the sunscreens I trust and why.
3 things I evaluate: clean, mineral, uv abilities. In the large markets of sunscreens, you will find clean sunscreens that don’t work and mineral sunscreens full of chemicals. So what makes up a clean mineral sunscreen that works:
It’s clean meaning no toxic chemicals like the list above with an EWG safety rating of 2 or lower.
It’s a mineral sunscreen meaning it used either zinc oxide or titanium dioxide as it’s the active ingredient.
UV abilities; another rating in the EWG showing the product’s UVA protection, UVA/UVB balance & sunscreen stability.
SUNSCREENS:
*Please note that companies do change formulas over time, I’ll try my best to continue to update this list each season.
Lastly, for all my podcast girlies or busy badass followers, here is a great podcast clip that highlights some of the risks mention above regarding sunscreen. PS. Big fan of Dr. Rhonda Patrick because she reads studies and then talks about new findings on her podcasts/social media. Give her a follow!
I plan on putting together a blog post soon about all the positive benefits of the sun & vitamin D in its natural form. The opposite spectrum of the fear I believe the chemical sunscreen/dermatology industry has been trying to instill in us so we purchase their products.
