Is Your Sunscreen Brand Lying to You?

We've already gone over some of the health risks associated with many common sunscreens because of the chemicals they contain. But most brands also present a risk in their lack of protection against the very things you are applying sunscreen for in the first place.

It's old news that the SPF reading we all go by when choosing sunscreen only protects one of the sun's two kinds of harmful rays—ultraviolet B, but not ultraviolet A. To brush up, TreeHugger has already explained a little background of the problem here: "UVB only represents 4% of the UV radiation entering the atmosphere and UVA is much more responsible for causing skin cancer, premature skin aging, and other skin damage. Since UVA protection is not regulated by the FDA, many claims of UVA protection are not credible."

But is the FDA doing anything about the lack of protection, or about the claims that many labels have about offering "full" protection when that's clearly not true? The New York Times sheds light on the good- and bad-news answers to that question.

On the plus side, the Food and Drug Administration is considering a set of guidelines for sunscreen that would set up a four-star system for effectiveness against UVA rays. The rules would also ban the use of misleading terms like "sunblock" and "all-day protection" from labels.

The bad news: These rules were proposed three years ago, and the agency has yet to take action. Critics of the F.D.A. have accused it of foot-dragging because of pressure from sunscreen manufacturers.

So what's the holdup? On top of the delays inherent in creating new federal regulations, the process has also been held up by industry lobbying. To create new UVA standards for sunscreens, the EPA also has to determine which methods will be used to test how well products meet those standards—but different tests produce different results, and as The Times continues, "sunscreen makers will lobby for whichever UVA test gives their formulations an advantage. 'Companies have different views, because their products will perform best on one of the tests,'" a Manhattan melanoma researcher and dermatologist said.

So here you have it—just a reminder to be on the lookout for brands that do provide UVA protection (avobenzone, Mexoryl SX, titanium dioxide, and zinc are the ingredients to look for; you might have to shop for European brands to find the right one) but also that do not contain harmful chemicals like carcinogens and hormone disruptors. Sure, an everyday task like buying sunscreen should be simple, but your health is worth the extra effort.