Sunscreen 2018
MY FAVORITE SUNSCREEN PICKS for 2018!
Every year I go to Walmart and check out the ever-expanding sunscreen aisle and come up with my top picks for the year! I am happy to say that there are LOTS of choices this year!
To say that I am super picky about sunscreen is an understatement. There are so many great choices. I work hard to find ones that meet individual needs. We carry things that are not easily commercially available in our Spring Boutique. Feel free to stop in and try them out.
I recommend an SPF>30. Make sure the bottle says that it protects against UVA and UVB, preferably 100% of UVA and UVB. Remember that sunscreens generally wear off or the chemical breaks down in 2 hours, so sunscreen needs to be reapplied throughout the day. CHECK THE ACTIVE INGREDIENTS! I particularly like sunscreens containing zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. Zinc and titanium are physical barriers that work much better and last longer than the chemical sunscreens. Zinc has a more complete and broader coverage than Titanium. Sunscreens that incorporate melanin also block against HEV.
Tinted Chemical Free For the face (Zinc and Titanium): Fallene SPF 58, ZO Skin Health Sunscreens, Elta MD . All of these are available in our office. The ZO Skin Health products also protect against HEV and IR.
Chemical Free for the Body: Cerave Face and Body SPF 50, Neutrogena Pure & free Baby, Neutrogena Sheer Zinc PureScreen, BARE Republic Mineral Face, Equate Baby Zinc Mineral Lotion, Banana Boat Simply Protect Baby, NO-AD Naturals Clear Mineral Formula, alba Botanica Sport Mineral and Sensitive Mineral, Aveeno Baby Continuous Protection, Blue Lizard, These are the ones I found on my recent trip to our local Walmart.
For KIDS – My kids love being able to put on their own sunscreen with sunscreen sticks. I like …Examples containing only Zinc and Titanium include… Neutrogena’s Pure Baby Sunscreen Stick, Aveeno Baby Continuous Protection Stick, Bare Republic stick, babyganics pure mineral sunscreen stick. All are available at Walmart.
Spray Sunscreens WITH Chemicals: In hard to treat areas like the scalp and ears, a spray is better than nothing at all. Make sure you rub it in after spraying. Neutrogena Fresh Cooling and UltraSheer Body Mist Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 70,
Spray Sunscreen WITH Zinc – Elta MD UV Aero SPF 45 Available in our office the convenience of a spray and the efficacy of Zinc combined! Plus I am so excited to have found a few of these at Walmart. Bare Republic and Goddess Garden Mineral spray. I have also tried Babo Botanicals Zinc Spray from Amazon.
Earlier this year, I also published an article with what is NEW for 2018 in sunscreen. Here’s the highlights!
NEW TECHNOLOGY IN SUNSCREENS for 2018!
Photolyases! Photolyases work to correct DNA damage caused by sun exposure. Photolyases, DNA repair enzymes, occur naturally in the skin, but are now available to apply topically. Products containing photolyases not only protect but ACTIVE REPAIR the skin as well. Antiaging products containing DNA repair enzymes have been available commercially for a few years in products such as ZO Daily Power Defense (plankton derived photolyases) , but combining them with sunscreen at an affordable price point is new and exciting. We carry the only sunscreen containing photolyases in the Spring Boutique. It is made by ISDIN and is called Eryfotona Actinica. https://www.isdin.com/us/sun-damage One study showed that in addition to protecting the skin, using a topical sunscreen containing photolyase could also decrease the number of active actinic keratoses. VERY EXCITING TO A NERDY DERMATOLOGIST !
Hope that helps keep everyone safe!
UPDATE! JUNE 25, 2018. While working on a future article about sunscreen environmental safety, I found a new site to cross reference. The Environmental Working Group has an independent site and rating system for sunscreens. Upon reading their data, NON NANO zinc oxide is considered the safest ingredient. Here’s a link to check your sunscreen.