The Environmental Working Group has issued its annual ranking of sunscreens, and reported that of more than 1,800 it reviewed, about 25% pass muster. That’s up from 20% in 2011 and 8% in 2010.
According to the group, children’s sunscreens contain the most effective and safest ingredients. Sixty percent of the 180 products marketed for children have ingredients such as minerals, which are considered effective, compared with only 40% of those for the general public. Also, kids’ sunscreens are less likely to contain oxybenzone – which the EWG said is an endocrine-disrupter – or chemicals that might cause allergic reactions.
The group recommends that consumers choose products with zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, or 3% avobenzone and that they avoid oxybenzone and vitamin A (retinyl palmitate). Sunscreen sprays and powders are not as effective as creams or lotions, according to the group. And it found that many manufacturers are selling products with escalating SPF values. More than one in seven have SPF values higher than 50, compared with only one in eight in 2009, according to EWG’s analysis.
In a statement from the EWG, Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) said the FDA needs to move more quickly on instituting sunscreen standards, but in the meantime, "it is good to know Environmental Working Group is providing consumers with the facts about the effectiveness of sunscreen products that are currently on shelves."
The American Academy of Dermatology refuted much of the EWG claim in a statement, noting that there is no evidence that oxybenzone affects hormones, nor is oxybenzone or vitamin A dangerous in sunscreens, said AAD President Daniel M. Siegel. The AAD continues to back use of a water-resistant, broad-spectrum sunscreen that protects against UVA and UVB, with an SPF 30 or higher, in conjunction with limiting sun exposure and wearing sun-protective clothing.