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:
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