Spring is approaching and so is the sun in Spain! No matter if you live in a sunny area, or visiting one, protecting yourself from the sun is essential. Rumours and investigations surrounding certain chemicals in sun lotion have been circling the media- so let’s uncover what’s true and what’s not:
Suncream is essential in protecting your skin against skin cancer, there is no doubt about it. Skin cancer comes in three different forms, two of which are less dangerous and can be relatively easily removed, and the other, melanoma, a very serious form of cancer. Suncream protects the skin by either absorbing or reflecting UV radiation, preventing cellular damage. Skin cancer can be caused by long-term sun exposure as well as serious spikes in UV, which you could receive when getting extremely badly burned or tanning beds, which have been banned in Australia.
In recent years, people have questioned the ingredients and chemicals in suncream. Rumours surrounding its safety for humans and the environment have increased, especially surrounding the chemical oxybenzone. Oxybenzone is a chemical filter that has shown endocrine-disrupting effects (affects your hormones) in laboratory and animal studies, as well as, damaging wildlife such as coral reefs. Because of this, Hawaii has banned suncreams with oxybenzone and octinoxate in, to protect their wildlife and urges tourists to use alternatives.
In terms of human dangers, results are still unclear. Experiments have been done on rats and animals which have proven some of these chemicals do influence their hormones however the amount used in sun lotions is quite low and so far there is no factual proof that states it is unsafe to use. It has also been found that traces can be found in your bloodstream, but again, there is no proof this affects us yet due to such low quantities.
Overall, suncream is a non-negotiable when it comes to protecting yourself from the sun and specifically skin cancer and any experiments being done surrounding the dangers of these chemicals are still ongoing and by no means mean you should give up using it, as so far, it is still deemed safe. If you are worried or cautious, you should invest in zinc or titanium based creams, and many brands have stopped including some chemicals such as oxybenzone due to wildlife welfare. Do you research, protect yourself and enjoy the sun!
