But The American Academy for Pediatrics (AAP) tells us that we should avoid potentially harmful chemicals like oxybenzone in children.Īnd then we see new studies coming out about certain chemicals found in sunscreen disrupting sperm function, specifically oxybenzone (also called benzophenone-3 or BP-3), avobenzone, octisalate (also known as octyl salicylate), homosalate, meradimate, octinoxate (or octyl methoxycinnamate), octocrylene, and padimate O. The American Academy of Dermatology says that sunscreen is safe and most dermatologists will tell you the same. You’ve likely heard conflicting information about sunscreen from different health professionals. I personally don’t feel comfortable advising people to take the risk under the assumption they may be safe. There are not extensive studies looking at the combination of products that most of us use and the long term effect of these multiple exposures to tell us they are safe. While some would say, it’s a small exposure or there is not enough data to avoid, I’d caution you about this advice. Our personal care products, makeup, household cleaners, laundry detergents, perfumes, and more can all play a role in hormone disruption, especially if they contain endocrine-disrupting chemicals. I have written at length about how the modern world makes avoiding hormone disruption extremely difficult. This is what I tell my patients to use when sunscreen shopping to take the stress out of the process.īelow is a list of ingredients with the most potential to be harmful, according to EWG: The EWG rates the most common ingredients based on whether or not they are harmful or allergenic to our bodies. Luckily, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) publishes a comprehensive sunscreen guide and updates it regularly. Not all sunscreen components are created equal, and there are a lot of sunscreens out there to choose from. These chemicals have also been linked to thyroid disease, birth defects, cancer, and infertility. EDCs can affect the adrenals, thyroid, and hormones produced by the ovaries. We should try to avoid EDCs as much as possible, as they are chemicals that mimic our natural hormones, and not in a good way.ĮDCs are commonplace in our world, and by mimicking the hormones our body naturally produces, they can wreak havoc on the balance of our hormones. One of the main problems with chemical sunscreen is that many of the ingredients in them are EDCs. Why You Shouldn’t Choose Chemical Sunscreens While sunscreen should be a vital part of your daily skincare routine, it is worth noting that many chemical sunscreens on the market today can contain endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), which can contribute to hormonal imbalance. These ingredients sit on the skin and deflect harmful UV rays. Physical sunscreens are those that contain mineral ingredients (e.g. There are two main types of sunscreen: physical blockers and chemical blockers. UVA may cause accelerated skin aging and pigmentation, while UVB can cause sunburn and can cause your DNA strands to break. It could cause premature aging, sunburn, and precancerous and cancerous lesions. Ultraviolet (UV) radiation can negatively affect the skin. But at a certain point, we definitely still need sunscreen to protect our skin from harmful UV rays. Vitamin D is so important for various reasons (like menstrual health, immune health, and more), so I do think that some daily sun exposure (without sunscreen) is important, but if the sun is out where you live, this will inevitably happen for most people. I can hear you asking, “But what about Vitamin D?”. Skin cancer deaths are real and you can proactively prevent damage to your skin. While sunscreen can be an annoying part of the sunbathing process with all the reapplying and the pesky white sheen that so many brands cause, it is necessary to protect your health and to keep your skin looking young. I see an eye roll coming and maybe even the common excuse I hear from my patients, “there’s no hormone safe sunscreen,” so let me explain. Before you throw on a swimsuit and grab your sunglasses for a day of sunbathing, there's an important step you should not skip: applying sunscreen.
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