Eco Green Tips

photo credit: Robert S. Donovan

We’ve been told over and over again how important it is to slather layers of sunscreen before you go out in the sun and then repeat it as often as possible to protect your skin from the harmful free radicals and thus prevent skin cancer.

While it is still true, and, by all means, we should not skip this sometimes bothersome step, the unpleasant fact is that many of the conventional sunscreens are not what they seem to be.

According to the Environmental Working Group, which checked the effectiveness of over 1500 skin care products containing sunscreen, 3 out of 5 do not meet their claims and do not provide adequate protection against sun damage. It’s more than 50% of the products! Worse yet, many of these products contain toxic chemicals, which are absorbed into your bloodstream and may disrupt your hormones, cause allergic reaction or leading to various other health issues.

Many leading brands do not meet the EWG’s criteria for safety and effectiveness however, things are slowly improving. According to EWG, 70% of conventional sunscreen products contain strong UVA as opposed to only 29% last year. Moreover, the number of this year’s stock containing oxybenzone, a harmful chemical, went down by 19%.

Below are top ten of the 25 brands listed by EWG in their Skin Deep database:

Badger Balm’s SPF 30 Natural Sunscreen— created to protect and moisturize with FDA-certified organic ingredients; water resistant up to 40 minutes, free of fragrances, preservatives or dyes.

True Kid “Sunny Days” Natural Mineral Sunscreen Stick—mineral ingredients titanium dioxide and zinc oxide offer broad spectrum protection.

Keys Soap Solar RX Cosmetic Sunblock— in SPF 30; rated second leading brand in safe, natural sunscreen protection; protects against bothUVB and UVA.

Lavera Sunscreen Neutral—best for sensitive skin; contains USDA-certified organic sunscreen and is free of parabens, fragrances and gluten.

Soléo Organics All Natural Sunscreen—recommended for both kids and adults, broad spectrum protection (UVA and UVB rays); suitable even for the most sensitive of skin.

UV Natural Sunscreen—made from 24.8% zinc and natural ingredients including green tea, grape seed, macadamia oil and natural vitamin E.

Mexitan sunscreen—available in SPF 50; contans both titanium dioxide and zinc oxide as its active ingredients to offer UVA and UVB protection.

Vanicream sunscreen—available in SPF 60; broad spectrum protection using natural ingredients; non-comedogenic, which means it won’t clog your pores so it’s safe to apply to your face.

MyChelle Sun Shield— it’s a two-in-one product for both skin protection (protects against UVA and UVB rays) and anti-aging properties (using natural ingredients such as leaf juice powder, soybean oil, D-beta carbohydrates, which work to reduce redness and inflammation, hydrate skin to reduce wrinkles and tighten skin to reduce facial sag).

Little Forest sunscreen—specially formulated for babies and kids; among the most highly-rated sport sunscreens for kids.

California Baby—made with hypoallergenic ingredients; water-resistant and chemical-free, made only with organic and sustainable ingredients.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 15th, 2009 at 7:28 pm and is filed under Products, Reviews, Shopping, Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.