Not all sunscreens are created equal. Make sure the sunscreen you use contains one key ingredient and avoid products that rely on toxic formulas. You aren’t staying safe if you are slathering toxic ingredients on your skin. Recognize there’s one SPF that can protect against the damaging rays of the sun, and you don’t need to spend extra money on sunscreens with higher numbers. These are the latest findings from dermatologists.
Invest time and effort looking for the one ingredient that offers the most effective formula for protection. Search for a broad-spectrum brand with zinc oxide, which provides the strongest protection against UVA rays. Why? UVA rays do the most damage since they penetrate deeper and cause the most harm to the skin.
The SPF you need is 30. That number protects skin against 97 percent of UVB rays. Go up to SPF 50 and your sunscreen blocks 98 percent. Climb to SPF 100 and you’re filtering 99 percent of UVB rays. See the difference? Benefits above SPF 30 are minuscule. Because higher SPF sunscreens tend to cost more, people tend to use them more sparingly than less expensive, lower-number SPF products. And that defeats the purpose of sunscreen.
Avoid these toxic ingredients when buying SPF: oxybenzone and octinoxate, phthalates, parabens, and bisphenol A, fragrance, methylisothiazolinone, and retinyl palmitate.
