By Sarah Kinonen, Allure
You've heard the spiel, you know the drill: Slathering on sunscreen every day is a must. But, according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), your daily dose of SPF might not be enough to block out the sun's powerful UV rays. The EWG just released its eleventh annual Guide to Sunscreens, and the results are in: some sunscreens aren't all they're cracked up to be.
[post_ads]The Guide to Sunscreens, which reviewed almost 1,500 products with SPF — nearly double the amount surveyed in the previous year's edition — found that 73 percent of the sunscreens don't work as well as they should and that a majority of the formulations to be made with controversial ingredients: retinyl palmitate, a form of vitamin A that may exacerbate skin cancer lesions, and oxybenzone, a chemical compound associated with causing photoallergic reactions known to cause damage to the world's coral reefs.
There's also good news, though! According to the EWG, since the start of its annual Guide to Sunscreens in 2007, the group has seen a dramatic increase in the number of mineral-based sunscreens become available to consumers — in fact, it doubled from 17 percent to 34 percent in 2017.
[post_ads]The Guide to Sunscreens, which reviewed almost 1,500 products with SPF — nearly double the amount surveyed in the previous year's edition — found that 73 percent of the sunscreens don't work as well as they should and that a majority of the formulations to be made with controversial ingredients: retinyl palmitate, a form of vitamin A that may exacerbate skin cancer lesions, and oxybenzone, a chemical compound associated with causing photoallergic reactions known to cause damage to the world's coral reefs.
There's also good news, though! According to the EWG, since the start of its annual Guide to Sunscreens in 2007, the group has seen a dramatic increase in the number of mineral-based sunscreens become available to consumers — in fact, it doubled from 17 percent to 34 percent in 2017.
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Mineral-based sunscreens, those made with natural ingredients, zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, block both UVA and UVB rays, work immediately after application, says New York City dermatologist Amy B. Wechsler. Some of our favorites? We're favorable to the Best of Beauty-winning silky, slightly tinted La Roche-Posay Anthelios 50 Mineral Ultra Light Sunscreen Fluid SPF 50 Face and the jojoba seed oil-based Alba Botanica Sensitive Mineral Sunscreen, which recently took home an Allure Reader's Choice Award. And while there are a number of mineral-based sunscreen options on the market, there's always room for more.
More on sun protection:
Mineral-based sunscreens, those made with natural ingredients, zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, block both UVA and UVB rays, work immediately after application, says New York City dermatologist Amy B. Wechsler. Some of our favorites? We're favorable to the Best of Beauty-winning silky, slightly tinted La Roche-Posay Anthelios 50 Mineral Ultra Light Sunscreen Fluid SPF 50 Face and the jojoba seed oil-based Alba Botanica Sensitive Mineral Sunscreen, which recently took home an Allure Reader's Choice Award. And while there are a number of mineral-based sunscreen options on the market, there's always room for more.
More on sun protection:
