What is the difference between chemical and physical sun protection?
Hand on heart, what is most important to you when choosing sun care? Do you decide based on price or ingredients?
The first promotions on sun care products appear with the first rays of sunshine. There are so many on the market – oils, butters, creams, sticks… it’s not hard to choose, and if you don’t insist on luxury cosmetics, the prices are usually more than reasonable. However, one thing that may not be acceptable is the composition full of harmful chemicals. You can find out everything you need to know to make the right decision below.
Did you know that?
- Chemical filters penetrate deep into the skin and can cause ageing?
- Are there laboratory tests that have demonstrated the existence of chemical filters in the blood? (link to article: https://ct24.ceskatelevize.cz/veda/2807900-chemikalie-z-opalovacich-kremu-se-dostavaji-do-lidske-krve-ukazala-americka-vladni)
- Do chemical filters damage the marine ecosystem, and in some countries (Palau, Hawaii, etc.) is it forbidden to enter the beach with chemical sunscreens?
- Each year, up to 14,000 tons of sunscreen end up in the ocean? (scientific study from 2015)
How to change this?
Pay attention to the ingredients in sunscreens; the most harmful substances for coral reefs include oxybenzone, octinoxate, methylparaben, etc.
Sunscreens with a harmless physical filter contain zinc oxide (Zinc Oxide), titanium dioxide (Titanium Dioxide), or a combination of both. It is important that they are not in nano form; if they are, they need to be coated with aluminium tristearate or alumina. This is the only way to ensure that the nano particles do not penetrate the skin or harm marine life.
You can find out how physical filters work in the image below.
Find natural sun care without harmful substances here: WoodenSpoon/sunscreen
Final advice: Only buy sunscreens containing physical (mineral) filters from certified manufacturers. Don't try to make your own sunscreen at home, because a special production technique is needed to properly disperse the zinc oxide particles, otherwise they may clump together and will not perform their sun protection function.