CHEMICAL SUNSCREEN INGREDIENTS SKIN

No, there are excellent studies that sunscreen protects against all three of the most common skin cancers: squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma, and melanoma. Some claim that sunscreen doesn't prevent the three main types of skin cancer. In other words, it was the high amounts of sun exposure, not the sunscreen, that elevated their risk of skin cancer. This false association was made because the individuals who used sunscreen were the same ones who were traveling to sunnier climates and sunbathing. These conclusions come incorrectly from studies where individuals who used sunscreen had a higher risk of skin cancer, including melanoma. Is there evidence that sunscreen actually causes skin cancer?Ī. At this point, we are not recommending our patients avoid sunscreens with oxybenzone, and if people choose to do so, they should be aware that the chemical exists in many other common products of daily use. Oxybenzone is also known to cause allergic reactions in some people, although this is not common.Įven if you avoid sunscreens with oxybenzone, you may encounter it in other products, including plastic, hairspray, and nail polish. It would take an individual 277 years of sunscreen use to achieve the equivalent systemic dose that produced effects in these rat studies, according to a 2017 study in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. Organizations that have raised concerns about oxybenzone typically cite studies done in rats, where the rats were actually fed oxybenzone. However, there has been no conclusive evidence that oxybenzone is harmful to humans.

A hormone disruptor is a chemical that has the ability to cross cell membranes and may interfere with your body's natural hormone production. Oxybenzone has received the worst press because of concerns that it may act as what is known as a hormone disrupter. In the United States these typically include aminobenzoic acid, avobenzone, octisalate, octocrylene, and oxybenzone. Chemical blockers contain chemicals that absorb the sun's ultraviolet rays. There are two types of sunscreens: Physical blockers reflect ultraviolet rays from the sun and contain one of two active ingredients, zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. Are there certain chemicals in sunscreen that people should avoid? I know some groups recommend avoiding certain ingredients.Ī. Below are her thoughts on what the science really says about sunscreen and whether it's a friend or foe to your skin.

Jennifer Lin, an assistant professor of dermatology at Harvard Medical School and co-director of the Melanoma Risk and Prevention Clinic at Brigham and Women's Hospital, to help us separate fact from fiction. That's enough to darken your day.īut are these statements true? We asked Dr. Some writers even go as far as to state that sunscreen may cause skin cancer, thanks to a purported harmful cocktail of toxic ingredients. Sunscreen is designed to protect your skin from the sun's damaging rays, but some of the claims made about it suggest it could do more harm than good.Īssertions include everything from statements that sunscreen is ineffective to warnings that it's outright dangerous. If you've ever searched online for information about sunscreen, what you found may have made you feel less than sunny about slathering on these lotions and creams. Don't let myths deter you from using it to protect your skin. Misinformation about sunscreen is common.

Chemical sunscreen ingredients