sunscreen Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Best Mineral Sunscreen to Use (Plus Benefits & Comparisons)

AHA Publisher — Tue, 17 Aug 2021 07:00:18 +0000

Jillian Levy, CHHC via Dr. Axe – One of the biggest concerns when it comes to wearing sunscreens, including mineral sunscreen, is whether or not you can absorb their chemicals through your skin and if this is potentially dangerous. Something that most people don’t realize is that in the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration regulates sunscreen as if it’s an over-the-counter drug rather than a cosmetic product. This means that strict regulations are in place to make sure that sunscreens are safe, whether we’re talking chemical or mineral sunscreens. According to the website Cnet, “The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is working to more tightly regulate the US sunscreen market and find out which ingredients in currently approved sunscreens, if any, are harmful to human health.” So based on what we know, what is the best sunscreen? Is mineral sun block considered a more “natural sunscreen” that is overall the best option? Let’s investigate below how different sunscreens compare and what to look for overall when choosing one. What Is Mineral Sunscreen? Sunscreens fall into two basic categories: chemical and physical. Dermatologists tell us that both types are effective at preventing UV damage to the skin. This helps lower the risk for sunburns, signs of aging, including wrinkles, and skin cancer. Mineral sunscreen is considered a type of physical sun block. Two of the biggest differences between the two types of sunscreens is how easily they are absorbed into the skin and how they work to block sun damage. Chemical types tend to rub in and dissolve more easily and work by absorbing UV light. Mineral sunscreens, on the other hand, can be harder to rub in (they often leave behind more of a white residue) and work more like a shield by blocking the sun’s rays from penetrating the skin. Benefits/Uses 1. Helps Prevent Sun Damage and Risk for Skin Cancer Getting a bit of direct sunlight exposure most days can be very health-supporting in many ways because it helps you avoid vitamin D deficiency — plus it’s good for your mood and circadian rhythm (your internal clock). However, you don’t want to overdo it and suffer a damaging burn. This is where sunscreen comes into play. Minerals including zinc oxide has been found to offer protection against “broad spectrum ultraviolet rays” (UVA/UVB). This is not always the case with chemical sunscreens that only block one type of UV light. 2. Can Reduce Signs of Aging and Potentially Breakouts Mineral sunscreen can help prevent future sun damage, wrinkles and sun spots, while also helping improve synthesis of new skin tissue and collagen, a key substance needed to maintain skin’s youthful appearance. The body requires zinc and other trace minerals for the synthesis of collagen that helps build and repair connective tissue. Zinc oxide may also help lower the appearance, severity, duration and pain of cystic/hormonal acne blemishes and breakouts. 3. Isn’t Absorbed Into the Skin as Easily Mineral sunscreen contains ingredients that basically sit on top of the skin’s surface and deflect UV rays. These ingredients, such as zinc oxide, are not easily absorbed into pores, so there’s less risk that you’ll have chemicals from sun block entering into your bloodstream and body. While zinc and other “natural sunscreen” ingredients can feel thick on the skin, they are usually easy to wash off with water and unlikely to stay on your skin long enough to cause any serious side effects. Mineral vs. Chemical Sunscreen Which ingredients are used in these sun blocks? As mentioned above, these two types of sun blocks differ in terms of their ingredients, how much residue they leave on the skin and how they work. Chemical sunscreens are often made with ingredients including: oxybenzone avobenzone octisalate octocrylene homosalate octinoxate These are easily absorbed into the skin, where they act like a sponge to soak up UV rays. One potential problem with commercial sun blocks is that individual chemicals often work by blocking either UVA or UVB rays but not both types. This means that chemical sunscreen manufacturers need to combine several different formulas/solutions into one product to prevent burns from happening. The more chemicals that are added, the higher the chances are for negative reactions, allergies and irritation. Mineral/physical sunscreens on the other hand are made with ingredients including zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. These tend to feel thicker and stickier, which is one reason why chemical sunscreens are often more appealing to some people. (They won’t leave your skin looking white and shiny.) Can sunscreen be absorbed into the skin? Chemical sunscreens have been shown to contain ingredients that can make their way into your bloodstream in small amounts, but the FDA has stated that there isn’t data showing that any FDA-approved chemical sunscreens are harmful to human health. However, not every expert agrees with this statement. Zinc oxide, found in mineral sunscreen, is not naturally occurring, but rather created when zinc is chemically heated and combined with oxygen molecules. The two elements are vaporized, condensed and formed into a powder that is fine, white, crystallized and sits on top of the skin, providing a protective layer, but it won’t be absorbed into the bloodstream. Is mineral sunscreen better than chemical? In February 2019, the FDA proposed that only two ingredients commonly found in sun blocks that are currently approved in the U.S. be classified as “generally recognized as safe and effective” (GRASE). These ingredients are zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, the minerals that are found in mineral sun block. As of July 2021, the FDA says that there are 12 other ingredients found in sunscreens that the FDA is working on gathering more data on regarding safety and effectiveness. At this time, the FDA still allows these ingredients to be used. The FDA did note that two ingredients found in some chemical sunscreens — para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) and trolamine salicylate — do potentially pose risks and should not be used in place of safer ingredients. There’s also the potential for chemical sunscreens (and any type of sun block, really) to sometimes be contaminated with harmful substances. For example, in June 2021, Johnson & Johnson voluntarily recalled five NEUTROGENA® and AVEENO® aerosol sunscreen product lines due to detection of small amounts of benzene, which is known to be a human carcinogen. Which is better, mineral or physical sunscreen? These terms are actually used to describe the same types of sun blocks. Another name for mineral sun block is physical sunscreen. What to Look for in Mineral Sunscreen Which mineral sunscreen is best? The Environmental Working Group (EWG) top sunscreen picks include organic mineral sunscreens that are made with ingredients like zinc oxide. Each year the EWG sifts through dozens of sunscreen label claims, ingredient lists and scientific studies to analyze what’s really in those sunblock bottles. It recommends choosing sun blocks with SPFs of 30+ that are mineral-based, made for sensitive skin and that contain mostly organic ingredients. A few brands to look for include Aveeno Baby, Babyganics, Bare Republic, Blue Lizard Australian and CeraVe Baby. Keep these tips in mind when looking for the best mineral sunscreens: Read ingredients carefully, and look for the words zinc oxide. This means the product has broad-spectrum blocking abilities. Apply mineral sunscreen about 30 minutes before you head outdoors. Be careful not to miss sensitive areas like the tops of the ears, back of the neck, lips, top of the head and your feet. Be cautious of whether any medications you take might make you more photosensitive. Risks and Side Effects Sunscreen should not be your first line of defense against the sun. In fact, avoiding peak sun overexposure, wearing sun-protective clothing and hats, and spending some time in the shade are better measures. Consider staying out of the sun between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. if you’re very sensitive to burns. Even when you do wear sun block, be careful about what other skin products you apply when heading into the sun, such as products made with retinol, vitamin A or vitamin C. These can increase photosensitivity and potentially contribute to burns. If you have an allergy to any known mineral, such as zinc, be very careful about using mineral sunscreen, and speak with your doctor about alternatives. Conclusion What is mineral sunscreen? It’s also called physical sun block and is a type of barrier cream that stops UV rays from penetrating the skin’s surface. Benefits of wearing this type of more “natural sunscreen” include preventing sunburns, signs of damage and potentially skin cancer. Chemical sunscreen is different because it contains ingredients that can be absorbed by the body. More information is needed to determine which health implications they may have. When searching for the best mineral sunscreen, look for the words zinc oxide. This means the product has broad-spectrum blocking abilities. To read the original article click here.

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Sunscreen Recall Targets 14 Popular Sunscreens Tainted with Known Carcinogen

AHA Publisher — Wed, 21 Jul 2021 07:00:20 +0000

Leah Zerbe, MS, NASM-CPT, NASM-CES via Dr. Axe – Johnson & Johnson issued a voluntary sunscreen recall after benzene, a known carcinogen, was detected in 14 different spray sunscreen products. The recall only involves aerosol products, a type of sunscreen that DrAxe.com and many public health advocates have been urging people to avoid for years for a host of different reasons. Sunscreen Recall Details Johnson & Johnson’s July 2021 spray sunscreen recall includes 14 products in the following five sunscreen lines. All SPFs and sizes of the following lines are impacted across the United States. Consumers are urged to stop using these sunscreens immediately: Neutrogena Beach Defense aerosol sunscreen Neutrogena Cool Dry Sport aerosol sunscreen Neutrogena Invisible Daily defense aerosol sunscreen Neutrogena Ultra Sheer aerosol sunscreen Aveeno Protect + Refresh aerosol sunscreen According to Johnson & Johnson, benzene is never used in any of its sunscreen products, and the company is actively investigating the cause of the contamination issue. Even before this voluntary, in-house batch testing, the sunscreen industry was feeling the heat. In May, Valisure, an independent laboratory, tested 300 popular sunscreen and after-sun products and found that 27% contained concerning levels of benzene. (These 222 products did not contain benzene, according to Valisure records, although some could contain other harmful ingredients like oxybenzone, fragrances and more.) “The FDA should set and enforce standards for chemical contaminants in everyday products like sunscreen so that consumers don’t need to rely on independent testing from labs like Valisure,” says David Andres, Ph.D., senior scientist at Environmental Working Group (EWG). The results of the Valisure testing in earlier this year prompted a petition urging the FDA to take stronger regulatory action to protect consumers from this known carcinogen. The petition lists sunscreen samples that contained benzene. ‘Out of an Abundance of Caution’ Long-term exposure to high levels of benzene can cause leukemia or other cancers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Still, Johnson & Johnson states that the levels recently detected in some of its sunscreen products aren’t expected to cause negative health impacts. “Daily exposure to benzene in these aerosol sunscreen products at the levels detected in our testing would not be expected to cause adverse health consequences,” Johnson & Johnson said in its statement Wednesday. “Out of an abundance of caution, we are recalling all lots of these specific aerosol sunscreen products.” While levels may be low, public health experts say there is no safe level of exposure when it comes to benzene, particularly for children. Benzene can trigger DNA mutations that can set off health issues that won’t show up for years after exposure in some cases. Benzene is widely used in the United States and ranks in the top 20 percent of chemical production volume. Industries use benzene to create the following products: Plastics, including nylon and synthetic fibers Dyes Detergents Pharmaceuticals Pesticides Benzene also turns up in: Oil Gas Cigarette smoke Problems Plague Spray Sunscreens There are other problems when it comes to spray sunscreens, too. Proper sunscreen coverage is challenging, since aerosol sunscreen distributes unevenly on the skin. This often gives people the sense of false protection. It can also lodge deep into the lungs, and we don’t fully understand how this impacts human health yet, although scientists are actively researching this. To opt for the best sunscreens, look for products scored 0 to 2 on on EWG’s annual sunscreen safety report. (The lower the score, the safer the ingredient formulation.) Here are some recommended sunscreens with safer safety profiles, according to EWG: Badger Kids Broad Spectrum Natural Mineral Sunscreen Cream, SPF 40 Badger Sunscreen Cream, Unscented, SPF 30 Coppertone Defend & Care Face Sunscreen Lotion, Oil Free, SPF 30 Neutrogena Clear Body Breakout Free Oil-Free Sunscreen Lotion, SPF 30 thinksport Everyday Face Mineral Sunscreen Lotion, Naturally Tinted, SPF 30+ Waxhead Sun Defense Skin Nourishing Sunscreen Lotion, SPF 30 Conclusion Johnson & Johnson issued a voluntary sunscreen spray recall involving 14 products in five product lines. The impacted product lines includes Neutrogena and Aveeno aerosol sunscreen sprays. Earlier in the year, independent lab testing found widespread benzene contamination in 27 percent of popular sunscreen and after-sun products tested. In general, avoid spray sunscreens. They contain chemicals that could lodge deep into your lungs and offer inferior protection due to coverage issues, according to EWG. Use EWG’s Guide to Sunscreens database to look for safer sunscreen options. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Axe click here.

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Sunscreen WARNING: Cancer-Causing Chemical Found in 78 Popular Sunscreen Products

AHA Publisher — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 07:00:00 +0000

Damon Hines via NaturalHealth365 – Skin cancer affects more than 3 million people each year. Sunscreen is designed to protect us from skin cancer, but how safe are the popular brands we apply to our skin every summer? Here’s something to think about as the warm weather arrives: Sunscreens were first regulated by the FDA in the 1970s, long before current American guidelines for evaluating drugs were put into place. It should come as no surprise then that sunscreens didn’t undergo rigorous testing. However, what is shocking is that many of the sunscreens on the market today are more harmful than beneficial, and some even contain a cancer-causing chemical. According to a recent report by Valisure, an independent team of scientists that test the chemical composition of healthcare and medication products, benzene, a known cancer-causing chemical, was found in 78 sunscreen and after-sun products tested. In fact, “27% of samples tested by Valisure contained detectable benzene and some batches contained up to three times the conditionally restricted FDA concentration limit.” High Levels of Benzene Linked to Blood Type Cancers Benzene is a colorless or slightly yellow flammable liquid that’s naturally found in the environment. It’s often used as a solvent in manufacturing plastics and other products and is commonly found in gels, sprays, and lotions. While benzene is allowed in products like sunscreen up to a certain level, high concentrations of the toxic liquid are dangerous and can increase the risk of blood cancers like leukemia. But why is benzene, a toxic carcinogen, even allowed in these products on a small level? According to David Light, founder, and CEO of Valisure, “Benzene is one of the most studied and concerning human carcinogens known to science. Its association with forming blood cancers in humans has been shown in numerous studies at trace levels of parts per million and below.” Valisure’s report isn’t the first time the potential health risks of sunscreen have made headlines. Over the years, studies have linked the chemicals in sunscreen to everything from hormone disruption to bioaccumulation in organs and tissue to severe allergic reactions. In addition, there have been concerns that sunscreen prevents the body from making vitamin D. While most experts have concluded that sunscreens are unlikely to affect the vitamin D status of healthy individuals, the debate is reignited every summer. In other words, the real biological effect of sunscreen in your blood is as bad as a cloudy day at the beach. All the BURNING Questions About Sunscreen Safety Answered Valisure is currently urging the FDA to recall the sunscreen products that contain high levels of benzene. A full list of the sunscreen products can be found here, on page 12 of the citizen petition Valisure wrote to the FDA on May 24, 2021. As for which sunscreens are the safest, you can check out the Environmental Working Group (EWG) website and download the EWG’s Guide to Sunscreen. Here you will find a list of brands that contain safer ingredients, making it easy to choose a product that is the best fit for you. What’s the bottom line? If you plan to spend time in the sun this summer, make sure the sunscreen you apply is benzene-free and double-check the expiration date. Better yet, engage in a combination of sun protection methods: hat, umbrella, plenty of breaks, and time in the shade, along with benzene-free sunscreen. Sources for this article include: LiveScience.com BBC.com EWG.org To read the original article click here. For more articles from NaturalHealth365 click here.

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7 Superfoods to Help You Prevent Sunburn

AHA Publisher — Thu, 27 May 2021 07:00:47 +0000

Dr. Don Colbert – Slathering your body with a goopy white chemical concoction may not be the only way to protect your skin from the damaging effects of a sunburn. It turns out that what you eat can have a dramatic effect on your tendency to burn. God didn’t make mistakes when creating human beings. We are not meant to be as vulnerable to the sun as we currently think we are. In fact, the sun is a life giving force that supplies the body with essential nutrients such as vitamin D. But if this true, how did we get to be so afraid of the sun? Catalyst vs. Cause Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the United States. One in five Americans will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime. It is estimated that between 40 to 50 percent of Americans who live to age 65 will develop a carcinogenic skin tumor. That is scary! Skin cancer is a serious issue that is certainly associated with overexposure to the sun in many cases. However, people also often develop skin cancers in areas rarely – if ever – exposed to the sun, such as the armpit or the groin. This means that sunburn is not the root cause of skin cancer, but instead more like a catalyst for its formation. It is true that a life of excessive sun exposure and sun damage will likely make your body more susceptible to skin cancer, but this is much more likely if your body is already in a weakened and vulnerable state due to poor diet and lifestyle choices. In other words, the sun isn’t the cause of skin cancer, but a toxic and inflamed body is. Sunburn = Skin Inflammation The redness, burning sensation, and eventual blistering associated with a severe sunburn are part of the body’s natural inflammatory response to excessive ultraviolet (UV) radiation exposure. Sunburn is basically the body’s warning sign that it has reached its limit of UV exposure. What’s interesting however, is that a healthy body – regardless of skin pigmentation – can handle much more UV radiation before triggering the inflammatory response that leads to sunburn. The Science A study conducted by German researchers found that foods high in antioxidant compounds dramatically affect how the skin reacts to sun exposure. The researchers gave half the participants of the study antioxidant-rich tomatoes and olive oil. The other half of participants ate the same diet except without the tomatoes and olive oil. At the conclusion of the 10 week study, the participants who consumed the tomatoes (1/4 cup daily) and the olive oil (2 tsp daily), experienced a whopping 35% less reddening than the control group! That’s a significant result. This is likely due to the anti-inflammatory and free-radical scavenging effect of the antioxidants found in tomatoes and olive oil. 7 Superfoods to Prevent Sunburn Now that we know how food can affect the skin’s ability to handle sun exposure, here are 7 powerful superfoods to protect your skin from the inside-out: Green Tea – Green tea is rich in antioxidants called catechins that are protective against UV damage Spirulina & Chlorella – Both of these nutritious species of edible algae contain a powerful carotenoid called Astaxanthin. This antioxidant is about 550 times stronger than Vitamin E, making it a great defense against UV damage to the skin and eyes Broccoli – Broccoli is loaded with an antioxidant called sulforaphane which provides powerful protection against UV radiation Pomegranate – Pomegranate is famous for it’s various antioxidant polyphenol compounds that can help protect the skin from oxidative damage. Blueberries – These delicious little berries are antioxidant powerhouses and help move the lymph allowing the body to detox and repair more readily Acerola Cherry – This superfood is loaded with vitamin C and phycocyanins which are considered to be the plants naturally occurring sunscreen. Krill Oil – The omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA found in fish and krill oil are essential to a healthy inflammatory response in the body. They also allow the cells of the body to more easily harvest the electrons from the sun leading to less tendency for sunburn Eat With the Seasons Do you notice a pattern in these foods? Most are foods that are at peak ripeness during the warmer months, or typically grow in tropical equatorial areas that receive massive amounts on sun exposure. Is this coincidence? Or God’s infinite intelligence at work? We have been provided the foods we need to thrive in the environment which we inhabit. Go to your local farmer’s market and try to find fresh antioxidant rich fruits and vegetables to naturally protect your skin from the sun. You can also get you antioxidants from the high quality fruit and vegetable extracts in Divine Health’s premium nutritional supplements. The antioxidant rich greens mentioned above can be found in Dr. Colbert’s Fermented Green Supremefood formula. For the benefits of the polyphenols in fruits and berries, try Dr Colbert’s Organic Red Supremefood. If you don’t want to eat a bunch of sardines everyday, you can try Dr. Colbert’s Living Krill Oil. References https://elissagoodman.com/healthy-tips/eat-to-avoid-sunburn/ https://www.sunislife.com/healthy-eating-prevents-sunburn/ http://www.thrive-style.com/2014/03/8-foods-prevent-sunburn/ http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/ask-the-experts/is-sun-exposure-the-only-cause-of-skin-cancer To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Colbert click here.

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