Regardless of skin type, we all need protection from harmful rays that can damage or cause our skin cancersSunscreen is made of carbonaceous molecules to absorb or reflect light away from the skin, but a problem is when those same ingredients have been reported to be harmful to the environment, especially coral reefs. As a result, some manufacturers have switched to marketing “reef safe sunscreen, but it’s probably not worth worrying about.
While there are some precautions to look out for with a sunscreen, coral reef damage shouldn’t be high on the list. Here’s what we know about the environmental impacts of sunscreen and what “safe” sunscreen should be.
Don’t change your sunscreen to save the coral reef
Sunscreen protects our skin from two types of harmful sun rays: UVB and UVA rays. UVB rays cause the skin to turn red and burn, while UVA rays are known to cause skin cancers such as melanoma. There are also two forms of sunscreen: physical and chemical. The skin cancer Foundation provides a clear definition of the two.
Physical (mineral) sunscreen ingredients (including the minerals titanium dioxide and zinc oxide) block and scatter the rays before they penetrate your skin.
Chemical sunscreen ingredients (such as avobenzone and octisalate) absorb UV rays before they can damage your skin.
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In a 2016 study, the chemical form of sunscreen has been found to be harmful to coral reefs and adds to the issue of “coral bleaching, “But one more recent study found “no quantifiable levels” of the harmful chemical in surface waters or in the coral itself. Chemistry doctorate and creator of scientific content Dr. Michelle Wong is an expert in the field and dispenses with any concerns about the degree of destruction sunscreen is causing by the coral reefs.
“It’s always possible that sunscreen has an effect on coral reefs, but the evidence so far indicates that sunscreen doesn’t have a major impact,” Wong explains. “The ocean is huge, so any sunscreen that gets into it dilutes very quickly.”
The real problem lies with the mass production of things like plastic, more than agriculture and the pollutants that contribute to climate change. Wong points out that most companies that use natural ingredients are “very energy intensive to produce.” If you think you can solve one problem, another will arise.
Why You Should Use Physical Sunscreen
Sunscreen does not travel through water in sufficient quantities to contribute to bleaching or damaging coral reefs. If you find yourself swimming atop the coral reef on your next diving excursion, Dr. Wong said it is “best to avoid the ingredients that have had a greater impact in laboratory studies, namely oxybenzone and octinoxate.”
If you want to protect yourself and do a little bit for the environment, opt for a physical sunscreen. Physical sunscreens use the chemicals titanium dioxide or zinc oxide to create a barrier between your skin and the UVA or UVB rays; they are not exactly “natural,” but are not known to cause coral reef bleaching.
“Many of the sunscreens marketed as ‘reef safe’ have poor texture and cause a white cast on the skin, which means people are less likely to use them up and expire on the shelf, which is no good for the environment. ”Says Dr. Wong Of course, this doesn’t mean throwing out all your sunscreen and running out to buy new tubes, but the next time you run out of sunscreen, consider keeping oxybenzone and octinoxate out of the way. to hold.