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to prevent disease and create increased vibrant
health and vitality...read
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Sunburn Prevention:
Are Sunscreens Safe?
by Jane Sheppard
Another school year has gone by, and it's
hard to believe that this was the last week
of school for my daughter. Summer is upon
us, along with warm, sunny days and the possibility
of sunburn. With fair skin and freckles, my
daughter and I have to be vigilant about preventing
sunburn.
While too much sun can cause sunburn and
skin damage, moderate sunshine is necessary
and beneficial to health. We all need adequate
amounts of sunlight to stay healthy. Sunshine
is the main source of vitamin D, which reduces
the risk of certain cancers and other diseases.
The light from the sun is very healing. How
much is too much depends on the individual
child. Some children, in the beginning of
the season, can only take about 10 to 20 minutes
at a time before burning. Others can go longer.
If your child will be in the sun for a long
period of time, they need to be protected.
The least toxic form of protection is wearing
a wide-brimmed hat and natural fiber clothing
that covers the skin. You can also minimize
their exposure to the sun from 10 a.m. to
3 p.m. (in the northern hemisphere) when the
sun is at its strongest.
Parents are now in the habit of generously
applying sunscreen to their kids on a daily
basis in the summer months. This is not a
good idea since sunscreen can be very toxic
and certainly not something you want to rub
into your child's body every day if not necessary.
Common sunscreen ingredients are suspected
or known carcinogens and/or hormone disrupters,
including diethanolamine, triethanolamine
(DEA, TEA), padimate-o, octyl dimethyl PABA,
benzophenone, oxybenzone, homosalate, octyl-methoxycinnamate
(octinoxate), salicylates, and parabens.
The results of numerous studies suggest that
many of the popular sunscreens could contribute
to cancer due to their mutagenic and free
radical generating properties. And perhaps
a more disturbing finding is that many commonly
used sunscreen chemicals have strong estrogenic
actions that may interfere with normal sexual
development and cause reproductive problems.
Chemicals in sunscreens can also cause skin
irritation and rashes.
Most people think that sunscreens protect
against skin cancer. While sunscreens do protect
against sunburn, there is no scientific proof
that they protect against melanoma or basal
cell carcinoma in humans.
Many popular sunscreens contain the chemical
ingredient Benzophenone (or its derivatives
Benzophenone-3 or Oxybenzone) since it is
one of the best of the chemical sunscreens
in protecting against both UVA and UVB rays.
However, sunscreens containing these chemicals
are NOT a good choice. Here is an instance
in which the protection may create more harm
than good and actually cause the disease it's
trying to prevent. Benzophenone is a powerful
free radical generator activated by ultraviolet
light. These free radicals could initiate
a reaction that may ultimately lead to melanoma
and other skin cancers.
Studies show that some of the chemicals in
topically applied sunscreen are absorbed into
the bloodstream in significant amounts. The
longer sunscreen chemicals are left on the
skin, the greater the absorption into the
body. One study notes "it would be prudent
not to apply oxybenzone to large surface areas
of skin for extended and repeated periods
of time, unless no alternative protection
is available. There may be an additional concern
for young children who have less well-developed
processes of elimination, and have a larger
surface area per body weight than adults."
Many sunscreen products contain triethanolamine
(TEA). This ingredient may combine with nitrite
(used as a preservative or may be present
as an environmental contaminant) to cause
formation of cancer-causing nitrosamines.
Nitrites are not disclosed on cosmetic labels
so there's no way of telling which products
are contaminated with nitrosamines. Particularly
disturbing is that up to 35 percent of TEA
applied to the skin can enter the bloodstream.
Physical barrier-type sunscreens such as
titanium dioxide and zinc oxide have been
assumed to be safer products. However, research
now shows that though titanium dioxide sunscreens
may be safer than products containing chemicals
such as benzophenone, they are not something
we should be putting on our children's bodies
on a regular basis. Titanium dioxide has the
ability to cause DNA damage in human cells
and there is concern that it may be carcinogenic.
Zinc oxide is a mineral that provides complete
UVB/UVA protection, has anti-inflammatory
properties, and is considered a safe sunscreen
ingredient. However, the regular form of zinc
oxide leaves a strong white residue on the
skin. To create a clear skin product rather
than one that leaves a white residue, zinc
oxide is now made in the form of nano-size
particles. There is some concern about the
toxicity of micronized or nanoparticles of
zinc oxide or titianium dioxide, which has
initiated a world-wide effort to study the
skin absorption and phototoxicity of nanoparticles
of preparations used in sunscreens and cosmetics.
At this time, the safety of nanoparticles
has not been proven, so caution is prudent,
especially when using these products on children.
Is there a safe sunscreen
product?
It seems that there are no definitive answers
to this question, and this may be one of those
issues in which we need to choose what offers
the least harm. Of course, covering with clothing
is always the safest, but this is not always
practical, especially if our kids will be
swimming in the sun for long periods.
Here is what I have decided to do for myself
and my daughter. We try to get 10-20 minutes
of sun exposure without sunscreen every day.
If practical, we stay out of the sun from
10 a.m. to 3 p.m. or cover with hats and clothing
during these times. If we will be out in the
sun for long periods or swimming, we use a
micronized zinc oxide sunscreen (my daughter
will never go for the white residue of the
regular zinc oxide). UV Natural (UVNaturalUSA.com)
makes a sunscreen product with micronized
zinc oxide as the only active ingredient.
They make a waterproof 30+ SPF that provides
four hours of protection while swimming. The
caution here is that it is micronized (nanoparticles),
so I can't say it's 100% safe. But in my opinion,
it's the least toxic option that provides
the greatest protection, next to covering
up with clothing.
Moderate sunshine every day is healthy. But
when our children's skin will be exposed to
longer periods of sun, we need to protect
them with the least toxic means possible.
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Use
the information provided on this site as an
educational resource for determining your
options and making your own informed choices.
It is not intended as medical advice or to
diagnose, prescribe, or treat any specific
illness.