Protect Your Skin--and the Planet

You know it’s smart to wear sunscreen, but why hurt the earth while saving your skin? Sunscreens can damage the environment with chemicals that take ages to break down and end up bleaching coral reefs (a couple of nasties: the UV inhibitors 4-methylbenzylidene camphor and octocrylene). Many also contain a raft of harmful ingredients that don’t add anything in the skin-protection department. Fortunately, an increasing number of products address at least one, if not both, of these problems.

The Environmental Working Group has put together a special report on sunscreens. After investigating nearly 1,000 products, the organization scored them on a scale from zero (no hazard) to ten (high hazard) based on performance in categories like ecological and reproductive toxicity. Filled with ingredients like avocado and olive oil, only these four clocked in with no strikes against them:

• Keys Soap Solar Rx Therapeutic Sunblock, SPF 30
• Trukid Sunny Days Facestick Mineral Sunscreen UVA/UVB Broad Spectrum, SPF 30+
• California Baby Sunblock Stick No Fragrance, SPF 30+
• Badger Sunscreen, SPF 30

--J.S.

More Green Life tips for making your day at the beach a green one:

• Eco Surfboards
• Where to Go
• Ditch the Dunes

Ever been frustrated in your search for sunscreen or other products with small environmental footprints? Share your tips and stories.

Comments

[Costume jewelry collector]

I will never understand why so many companies ignore the environmental factors when producing their products. I hope this will change before it becomes too late.

[Kylee Jones]

I was reading the other day and I also found out that the FDA doesn't regulate what companies put in their sunscreens. I gathered as much information about it and wrote an article on my blog: HealthyBodyHealthyHome5.blogspot.com. I then discarded all of our sunscreens b/c they contain OXYBENZONE. Oxybenzone is a chemical that is absorbed by the skin and is a carcinogenic. So watch out for it.

[Valerie Marrero]

Please tell us about all of the examinated products to see how harmful is what we have.

I have a sunscreen that supose to be natural harmful chemical free.

[James Mckendrick]

Some talk of sunscreens using nanoparticles.All of this nanoparticle stuff is very dangerous to our planets health and some as toxic as asbestos.

[Lesli Bair]

I just looked at the report. Wow. Even the sunscreens that scored the best have yes checkmarks in columns like: ingredients linked to cancer, bioaccumulation, toxicity, etc.

It looks like if it's not nano particles, then it's oxybenzone.

But is it better to get full sun exposure? hmmm. I admit it, I'm vain, and I could do without the wrinkles and sunspots that go with sun exposure.

[Ami]

Trade-offs for health. Melanoma walks in my family. After having it myself, I'll wear the best, (long-wearing) sunscreen, as well as hats, longsleeves, etc. to try not to get cancer again. The alternative, to be a hermit and never travel, is not a reasonable option.

[Richard]

However much I dislike covering up when it is sunny and hot out, I'm doing that more and more. Even before we lost a big chunk of the ozone layer, it was THE way to protect oneself from the sun in the days before sunscreen. You know - when we had a lot less skin cancer.

[Virginia Martin]

Besides using sunscreen, I've bought from Coolibar, that makes UV-filtering clothing. Check out their website!

[best sunscreen]

Great article! I find it particularly interesting how you addressed the issue of environmental effects of sunscreen. Few people take this into consideration but it is a very important issue. There ARE natural, safely-made brands of sunscreen out there, people just need to find them