First published July 2007, updated July 2009
The regular use of sunscreen lotion might provide some protection
from sunburn, but it may also have quite serious health risks - for ourselves
and the wider environment.
The sunscreen industry is huge - worth billions of dollars annually. It
rose to mega-profitability when a link was made between skin cancer and
overexposure to the sun in the late 60's/early 1970's. Yet the incidence of
skin cancer continues to rise even though these products are widely used.
An
investigation by the Environmental Working Group of over 1,500 sunscreens
and other sun-blocking products currently on the market found that 3 of 5
sunscreens either don't protect skin from sun damage or contain hazardous
chemicals - or both. Leading brands were the worst offenders. Of all the
preparations tested, only 92 were recommended, 1,203 scored the
"caution" flag and the EWG recommended avoiding 319 products
altogether.
It's quite disturbing what's in sunscreen. Take a look at this partial list
of ingredients that can be found in many sunscreen lotions:
Aminobenzoic acid - possible carcinogen may be implicated in cardiovascular
disease.
Avobenzone - possible carcinogen
Cinoxate - some evidence of skin toxicity
Dioxybenzone - strong evidence of skin toxicity and possible carcinogen;
hormone disruptor and has been found in waterways, soil and air. Has been
shown to have a "gender bender" effect in animals
Diazolidinyl urea - possible carcinogen, endocrine, central nervous system
and brain effects, skin toxicity an compromises the immune system
Ecamsule - may be carcinogenic
Homosalate - endocrine disruption
Methylparaben - interferes with genes
Octocrylene - found to be persistent and bioaccumulative in wildlife, liver
issues and possible carcinogen
Octyl methoxycinnamate - accumulates in the body, may disrupt liver and is
a possible carcinogen
Octyl salicylate - broad systemic effects in animals at moderate doses
Oxybenzone - possible carcinogen and contributor to vascular disease, may
affect the brain and nervous system in animals
Padimate O - suspected carcinogen
Phenylbenzimidazole - possible carcinogen
Phenoxyethanol - irritant, possible carcinogen, endocrine disruption
Sulisobenzone - strong evidence of skin toxicity, affects sense organs in
animals
Titanium dioxide - suspected carcinogen when in nanomaterial form
Zinc Oxide - bioaccumulative in wildlife, evidence of reproductive toxicity
Fragrances, colors and preservatives - I hate to think
To prevent skin cancer, we need to slap on potentially carcinogenic
compounds and chemicals that interfere with our immune and reproductive
systems and that also pose a risk to the wider environment?
Millions of gallons of sunscreen is consumed each year. After application,
it doesn't mysteriously vanish - it winds up either soaking into our bodies
and accumulating there or is excreted (into the environment) or washed off;
again - into the environment.
I'm now a little cynical about the benefits of sunscreen. Sure, it may stop
us from burning; but isn't that nature's way of telling us "get the heck
out of the sun and don't stay out here this long again". And aside from
all the chemicals, does it actually stop melanomas, the most dangerous type of
skin cancer, from forming?
Nobody has proven that sunscreen helps protect against melanomas. In fact,
some of the advice from researchers I've read basically states; "we don't
know, but you should keep using sunscreen - just to be safe". How safe
are we in applying these chemical cocktails?
One of the other problems with sunscreen is in order to be effective
against less serious forms of skin cancer, you need to use a lot of it, and far more often than what the manufacturers recommend and regardless of what the SPF rating is.
If you're in shorts and a t-shirt and working up a bit of a sweat, the amount you'd need to use over an 8
hour period is the equivalent to a 100 ml or 3.5 ounce tube. Imagine if you
worked outside each day and followed "best practice" sunscreen
application - it would cost you a fortune, not to mention having applied many
pounds of toxic chemicals to your body every year. Let's not forget about all
that packaging too - mainly plastic tubes and pump packs that wind up in
landfill - millions of them every single year.
By using sunscreen, are we swapping the risk of one type of cancer for more
serious kinds, plus other health and environmental problems?
After many hours of reading on the subject; the cheapest, most earth
friendly and proven sunscreen solutions I could find are:
- stay out of the sun
- stay out of the sun especially between 10 and 3pm
- if you have to spend time in the sun, cover up, wear a wide brimmed hat and
uv sunglasses.
I did come across earth friendly products that contained herbs and oils to
replace some of the chemicals listed above, but I'm really not confident after
the studies I've read as to how effective these might be in terms of
preventing melanoma or other forms of skin cancer. There's also the issue of micronized
and nanoparticle ingredients which are still often found in otherwise
greener products.
Some people just aren't meant to spend lengthy periods in the sun - and
light skinned Caucasians are a group most at risk. People with lighter
features are 20 times more likely to develop melanoma than African Americans.
Perhaps it's just another case of us needing to work with the
environment instead of trying to beat it all the time.
