Do you know which sunscreens are safe and which are toxic?

Sunburn, wrinkles, and skin cancer. All are reasons we slather ourselves with sunscreen.

And they are all wrong, wrong and wrong.

The Environmental Working Group has just released its annual report on sunscreens. And what it has to say is alarming.

The group found that two-thirds of products it looked at either don’t work or have dangerous ingredients. And some of them can actually cause skin cancer!

For one thing, the SPF — or “sun protection factor” — can often be misleading. You may think an SPF 100 makes you safe all day. But the EWG says those numbers offer nothing more than a “false sense of protection,” and that there’s no need for anything over SPF 50.

Then there are those with toxic chemical ingredients. OIxybenzone, for instance, can cause hormonal problems, and retinyl palmitate can interact with the sun and fast-track skin tumors and lesions.

And the group warns you to absolutely stay away from products that combine bug repellents with sunscreens.

But don’t think that means you have to stay indoors all summer. There are ways to enjoy the benefits of sunshine.

First, get a short amount of unprotected sun exposure to boost your vitamin D levels — but not for too long. Then cover up with a hat, long sleeves and long pants or a skirt.

Of course, there are times when you can’t help but expose your skin for longer periods. In those cases, you should use a sunscreen recommended by the EWG that will protect you without risky chemicals.

For a list of EWG-recommended sunscreens, click here.

Sources
“The most toxic sunscreen (and safer options)” Leah Zerbe, May 20, 2014 Rodale News, rodalenews.com