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Memorial Day Weekend is just around the corner, and that means backyard barbeques and trips to the beach. As you gear up to head outside, remember to take sunburn precautions. Nothing spoils the holiday fun like red, blistered, painful skin.
A few tips from the EPA and FDA. Limit your time in the sun, especially from 10-2 when UV rays are strongest. Cover up whenever possible. Use water resistant sunscreen when swimming or exerting yourself. And this one is key: REAPPLY. Specifically, the :
Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF rating of 15 or higher. Apply sunscreen 20 minutes before going out into the sun (or as directed by the manufacturer) to give it time to absorb into your skin. Apply it generously and regularly鈥攁bout 1 ounce every 2 hours鈥攁nd more often if you are swimming or perspiring.
As for choosing a sunscreen, once again the folks at the Environmental Working Group have done the heavy lifting. Their 184 top-rated beach and sport sunscreens are below; on you鈥檒l find lots more info and ratings for many, many more products鈥攊ncluding , , and with SPF鈥攁s well as their free .
Before the good stuff, here are from EWG:
- No spray sunscreens: It鈥檚 easy to miss spots, and there are concerns about inhaling the product.
- No super-high SPFs: They give a false sense of security, which can lead to fewer re-applications, which increases risk of exposure to damaging UVA rays. Avoid anything higher than SPF 50+.
- No oxybenzone: A UV-filter, this chemical is an that 鈥攎ore research is needed.
- No loose powder sunscreens: These often contain zinc or titanium, which can be harmful if inhaled.
- No retinyl palmitate: Studies show that on sun-exposed skin, this form of Vitamin A may speed development of skin tumors and lesions.
- No combined sunscreen/bug repellents: There鈥檚 some evidence that combining sunscreens and repellents leads to increased skin absorption of the repellent ingredients.
- No sunscreen towelettes: It鈥檚 questionable whether these products result in enough sunscreen on your skin to ensure protection.
- No tanning oils: EWG says, 鈥淭anning oils are simply a bad idea. They promote risky behavior, encouraging users seek out intense sunshine that results in skin damage and increased risk of developing skin cancer.鈥
Now, on to the . All earned a 鈥1鈥 or a 鈥2鈥 from EWG, which scores products on a on a scale of 1 to 10: 0-2 is low hazard; 3-6 is moderate hazard; 7-10 is high hazard.
Absolutely Natural
Alba Botanica
All Terrain
ARCONA
Aubrey Organics
Ava Anderson Non Toxic
Aveeno
Babo Botanicals
BabyGanics
Badger
BALM! Baby
Beauty Without Cruelty
Beyond Coastal
Blue Lizard
BurnOut
Burt鈥檚 Bees
Butterbean
California Baby
Celadon Road
Celtic Complexion
CeraVe
Climb On!
Consonant Skincare
COOLA
Coppertone
Coral Safe
CVS
Daisy Blue Naturals
Dolphin Organics
Dr. Robin for Kids
ECO Logical Skin Care
Elementary Herbs
EltaMD
Episencial
Fallene
Goddess Garden
Green Babies
Green Screen
HeadHunter
Healing-Scents
Jason Natural Cosmetics
Jersey Kids
Jersey Shore Sun
John Masters Organics
KINeSYS
Kiss My Face
La Roche-Posay
Lavanila Laboratories
Lemongrass Spa
Marie Veronique Organics