Is your sunscreen bad for you? That's quite an alarmist title for a blog post when we all know how damaging the sun can be on your skin, but the information the American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently released is something we all should be concerned about. Because sunscreens are formulated on the basis that they work on the surface of the skin, little thought has gone into what is actually absorbed into your body.
The FDA, after a recent pilot study, have concluded that the ingredients could, and most likely are absorbed. Because of this they are asking sunscreen manufacturers to provide more information on the ingredients used. The FDA declared only mineral sunscreen ingredients as safe, specifically zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. The agency said 12 other chemicals commonly used in sunscreens need more research to determine if they can be officially listed as safe, including oxybenzone and octinoxate.
Hawaii have already acted making it illegal to sell sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate from 2021. The Virgin Islands have included the ingredient octocrylene in their ban, effective from next year. Why? Because those chemicals kill fish and coral in their reefs when they wash off tourists swimming in the sea. One drop of sunscreen with oxybenzone mixed into an amount of water the equivalent of six-and-a-half Olympic-size swimming pools has a notable toxic effect on marine life. (ref)
At MISMO, we have always developed products with the premise that the formulations will be absorbed into your body, hence the use of natural safe ingredients. Our Ultra Moisturising SPF Sunscreen is not only great for maintenance of skin hydration, but safely protects your skin from the sun using zinc oxide (and it's a micro version of Zinc so it doesn't leave a white sheen!)
Zinc reflects UV rays, both UVA and UVB. It's a super calming ingredient which is excellent for Rosacea, acne and blemish prone skin. Here's a great article about sunscreen from Science Friday where they interview Kanade Shinkai, a professor of dermatology at UCSF and editor in chief of the Journal of the American Medical Association Dermatology, about what the next steps are for sunscreen testing and what consumers should do in the meantime.
MISMO Ultra Moisturising SPF Sunscreen contains high concentrations of Zinc, MSM and hyaluronic acid for excellent hydration.
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