Avoid sunscreens containing Oxybenzone

Thursday, 10 April 2008

One of the key reasons I’m uncomfortable with using chemical sunscreens is because studies at all levels have proven that chemical sunscreens penetrate the skin, get into the bloodstream and are harmful to the body. As a matter of fact, a widely-used sunscreen ingredient called Oxybenzone, also known as Benzophenone-3, has been linked to allergies, hormone disruption, and cell damage with a new study recently published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to back it up.

According to this analysis from Environmental Working Group (EWG), findings of the CDC study indicate that Oxybenzone reacts negatively with sun exposure and have negative impacts on our bodies such as:

- triggering possible allergic reactions by sun exposure.
- forming free radical chemicals that may be linked to cell damage.
- disrupting the hormone system.
- absorbing through the skin in significant amounts.
- accumulating in the fatty tissues in the body for many days.
- helping other chemicals penetrate the skin.

A companion study released a day earlier also revealed that mothers with high levels of Oxybenzone in their bodies were more likely to give birth to underweight baby girls. And what’s also alarming is on top of the many sunscreen products in the market that contain this harmful ingredient, companies also use the toxic chemical in other personal care products, including lip balm, lipstick, moisturizers and fragrance for women.

I know many have criticized EWG as a scare mongrel, but I’m in support of their stance especially since they’ve always back their analysis with studies as in this case. Moreover, just think about the amount of sunscreen you have to slap on just to get adequate protection and think about how much toxins you’re subjecting yourselves to in the longer term if yours contain Oxybenzone.

So gals, let’s do ourselves a favor. Read the ingredient list of your sunscreens and for the matter, all your personal skincare products and look out for Oxybenzone to avoid. Afterall, we do have plenty of safer choices.

For a safe list of sunscreens, look up Skin Deep Cosmetics Safety Database.