Did you know that sunscreen is being banned in places like Florida and Hawaii? Do you know that it is being banned because it is killing off the coral reefs? True story. Researchers estimate that over 5,000 metric tons (a metric ton is approx 2,200 pounds) wash off swimmers, surfers, etc. every year. Now, I don’t know about you, but if something is banned because it is killing off the coral reef, I do not want to be using it on my body (hint, this is why we make our own Sunshield)!
Two of the nasties in sunscreen, and the reason for the ban, are oxybenzone and octinoxate. Oxybenzone (may be referred to as Benzophenone-3, or a number of other names) causes photoallergic reactions. Photoallergic means “sun allergy” and medicinenet.com describes it as this, “Photoallergic reaction: An allergic reaction caused by drugs in which ultraviolet exposure changes the structure of the drug so that it is seen by the body's immune system as an invader. The allergic response causes inflammation of the skin in the sun-exposed areas. These usually resemble eczema and are generally long-lasting. Many drugs in this family are topical drugs. Individuals with photoallergic reactions may initially complain of itching (pruritus). This is then followed by redness and possibly swelling and eruption of the involved area.”
Oxybenzone is also known to disrupt hormones. Most notably, oxybenzone causes cellular structure damage. This means that oxybenzone can cause cancer (isn’t using sunscreen supposed to lower cancer rates?).
Octinoxate (found under the nameoctyl methoxycinnamate and ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, as well as other names) is absorbed very quickly into the skin (no it does not stay on the skin to “protect” you) and is shown to be an endocrine disruptor. Octinoxate is made by mixingsulfuric acid with methanol, a petroleum by-product.It mimics estrogen and affects thyroid function, and causes the onset of puberty, sometimes much too soon. As mentioned before, it is also killing off the coral reef.
Oxybenzone and octinoxate = get these nasties outta ya!
Keep your body (and your little ones) safe from these chemicals by choosing products that have ingredients that are life giving -- surprise surprise, that’s us (see our Sunshield Salve)!! One more reason to #lovecurate!
Learn more about why we need the sun, here, and the magic ingredient in our sunshield that helps with sun exposure, here.
