[HN Gopher] The trouble with ingredients in sunscreens
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The trouble with ingredients in sunscreens
Author : adomasm3
Score : 59 points
Date : 2023-11-07 19:46 UTC (3 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (www.ewg.org)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.ewg.org)
| lancefisher wrote:
| I've started to minimize my use of sunscreen. It still important
| to stay protected from the sun, but long sleeves, hoods, hats,
| and pants are a great alternative. The lightweight sun shirts are
| comfortable and more convenient.
|
| For my kids, I got them cheap wetsuits from Amazon for the time
| we spend camping at the lake. This is also cheaper than
| sunscreen. They can fully manage it on their own since about age
| 6 or 7.
| TedDoesntTalk wrote:
| this is a good solution but doesn't protect the face. zinc
| oxide (physical sunscreen) is a good choice for the face that
| doesn't have the problems in the article.
|
| Of course, zinc oxide looks terrible - white hue - but there
| are some that are not as bad as others. I use Neutrogena Sheer
| Zinc Kids (roll-on, so adults and kids can use it easily).
| After a little rubbing, it's still noticeable but just barely.
| The "regular" neutrogena sunblock - lotion style - has one or
| more of the chemicals that break down into benzene. Some of
| them were in the FDA recall. The EWG article doesn't mention
| these break down into benzene. It shoulld. ConsumerLabs did a
| thorough review and analysis.
|
| The summer 2023 Consumer Reports (not ConsumerLabs) article on
| sunscreen had absolutely no mention of the sunscreen recalls
| (2021, 2022, 2023) and in fact recommended some products that
| had been recalled and are known to break down into benzene and
| benzophenone. Any residual respect I had for them is now gone.
| copperx wrote:
| Tinted zinc oxide face sunscreen is fantastic, and it covers
| face blemishes. It's like makeup lite.
|
| Zinc/titanium oxide for the body is a more problematic, I've
| haven't found a brand that blends well.
| TedDoesntTalk wrote:
| Titanium dioxide protects primarily against UVB and much
| less so for UVA. Zinc oxide protects against both.
| stronglikedan wrote:
| I found a good reef friendly zinc oxide (All Good Zinc Butter
| Sunscreen) that doesn't give the white sheen when you rub it
| in really well. A lil' dab'll do ya, as they say.
| Moru wrote:
| Don't sunscreen need to be pretty thick to be as good as it
| says on the label?
| talldatethrow wrote:
| How does one get their required sun for vitamin D if taking
| sunscreen so seriously?
| TedDoesntTalk wrote:
| Vitamin D supplements + Vitamin K2
| galangalalgol wrote:
| I still wear a hat, or cover up entirely if I will be out
| all day, but the fern based pills like helicare or
| solaricare or whatever seem to prevent me from burning, or
| even reverse a mild burn if I take it fast enough. I have
| no idea if it is preventing dna damage that would lead to
| cancer. But I get a little tan by the end of the summer.
| And I've never done that before. My dermatologist
| recommended it so it must be fine...
| devit wrote:
| A silver-coated umbrella is very effective at protecting the
| face as well as some of the upper body (or the whole body, if
| the sun is directly overhead or the umbrella is huge), except
| for UV reflected from elsewhere which I think is usually not
| significant.
| deathanatos wrote:
| > _cheap wetsuits_
|
| See "rash guards". They're light-weight UV-opaque T-shirts that
| are intended to get wet, essentially. I wear one, and I do not
| burn under it, even at the beach, in the sun, all day. _Do not
| forget to apply sunscreen to your hands_ , since it doesn't
| cover them -- I made that mistake exactly once. (And other
| exposed areas, of course.)
| LorenPechtel wrote:
| Never heard of them before, sounds like they might be useful.
| TedDoesntTalk wrote:
| I've never heard them called wet suits or rash guards. Here
| we call them "sun shirts" or "UV shirts". They are most
| definitely not wet suits like scuba diver gear.
| scythe wrote:
| Sad to see this article reach the end of the scrollbar without
| even a mention of the triazine sunscreens which are pervasive in
| Japan and approved in the EU with no action from the FDA.
|
| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bemotrizinol
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iscotrizinol
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethylhexyl_triazone
|
| _etc_
|
| Concern over the FDA slow-walking approval of triazine sunscreens
| was raised in the trade press no later than 2005:
|
| https://pubsapp.acs.org/cen/coverstory/83/8315sunscreens.htm...?
|
| To date there has been no movement.
| _moof wrote:
| Fortunately while we wait for the FDA to get its act together
| we can buy triazine sunscreen relatively cheaply and have it
| shipped here. I've been using Altruist:
| https://altruistsun.com/
| beefman wrote:
| We briefly had nanozinc, which works for hours, stays on in the
| water, and is good for skin. But it was cancelled in a bout of
| consumer hysteria based on nothing. Fifteen years later we're
| still stuck with chemical sunscreens that are irritating, work
| for 30-60 minutes at a time, wash off in the water in 2 seconds,
| and may actually be bad for health.
| pixl97 wrote:
| >Upon inhalation of ZnO nanoparticles, serious local effects in
| the lung were observed. Even if this may be due to the
| solubilized Zn ions, the effects are a direct result of the
| exposure to the ZnO nanoparticles. Therefore, the SCCS is of
| the opinion that, on the basis of available information, the
| use of ZnO nanoparticles in spray products cannot be considered
| safe.
| TedDoesntTalk wrote:
| There are many zinc oxide sunscreens today that market
| themselves as "non-nanoparticle" for this very reason. Pro
| tip: don't ever use spray-on sunscreen, especially around
| children who can't hold their breath.
| slaymaker1907 wrote:
| It's sometimes useful for areas with a bit of hair, but not
| enough hair to protect the skin from the sun. However, if
| you do use spray sunscreen, also make sure to do it outside
| or other very well ventilated area.
| beefman wrote:
| Many sprays and powders are harmful to lungs, including zinc
| oxide particles of any size. SCCS concluded nanozinc in non-
| spray sunscreens is safe
|
| https://ec.europa.eu/health/scientific_committees/consumer_s.
| ..
| coob wrote:
| What about Diethylamino Hydroxybenzoyl Hexyl Benzoate (P20) ?
|
| Is that available in the US?
| sgt wrote:
| I never use sunscreen... I just try to stay out of direct sun in
| the worst parts of the day if I can. Wear a hat etc. Sun can be
| pretty hot here in South Africa but that's a common approach I
| think.
| SoftTalker wrote:
| Just basically whatever doctors and the FDA says is probably
| wrong. That's the conclusion one can draw about the endless
| stories like this.
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(page generated 2023-11-07 23:00 UTC)