Best Sunscreens for You and the Environment.

Best Sunscreens

Finding the best sunscreens for you and the environment means discovering sunscreen facts on which are the most beneficial sunscreens for your health and the health of the earth. Before determining which are the safest and most effective sunscreens, however, it is helpful to have a short Biology 101 review on our skin and the sun.

Skin and Sun

As mentioned on Begin Within Natural Skincare's Skin Type page, skin has many functions. A couple of of its most important ones, however, have to do with the way skin interacts with the sun.

First, skin has a protective role with regard to ultraviolet radiation. Melanin, a pigment that darkens the skin and that ranges in color from yellow to brown to black, is produced by specialized skin cells called melanocytes. When melanocytes are exposed to sun, they produce more melanin pigment and skin darkens in color.

UVA and UVB rays differ in the way they impact the skin but each play a part in increased melanin production. UVA interacts with melanin already present in the skin and gives a quicker tan that lasts for several days; UVB rays work at a more foundational level by stimulating the body to produce more melanin and therefore produce a tan that takes longer—roughly two days—to produce. Either way, the additional pigment produced forms a protective barrier over the "sun" side of cells that, in turn, shields the cell's genetic material from ultraviolet wavelengths. Melanin really is the first and among the top contenders for the most natural best sunscreens.

The second great function that occurs with skin's interaction with the sun is conversion of certain molecules in the skin to calciferal—D3—the most active and most readily usable form of natural Vitamin D for the body. With appropriate amounts of sun exposure, our bodies produce a sufficient amount of Vitamin D3, with virtually no risk of overproduction.

The best sunscreens, therefore, aid our skin in its protection role without undue interference with skin's role in vitamin D production.

Best Sunscreens in a Nutshell

Focusing on dietary and lifestyle practises that have a long history of safe use, the naturally best sunscreens are to:

slowly and gradually develop a modest amount of tan—a tan's ability to provide a protective barrier for cells' genetic material is a simple, effective and natural sunscreen
keep hydrated—supplying the body with sufficient water offers skin cells better protection from sun's potentially damaging effects
take your essential fatty acids—EFAs role in skin health keep skin healthier in general but studies show especially omega 3 oils have the ability to inhibit UV radiation's cancer-promoting effects
eat a diet rich in anti-oxidants—the antioxidants found in fruits (i.e. mango, acai, blueberries) and vegetables (i.e. tomatoes, carrots, broccoli) provide many benefits to overall wellness and skin health in particular but some (i.e. the vitamin E found in whole grains, vitamin C found in green peppers and citrus fruits), seem to specifically afford protection against sunburn
consume healthy oils—the use of natural food oils such as olive oil and coconut oil support skin health, whereas trans fats or heavily processed omega 6 oils (i.e. corn, sunflower) can negatively impact skin's health and ability to protect itself from some of sun's damaging elements
wear protective clothing—wearing broad-brimmed hats and darker coloured, long-sleeved natural and breathable fabric shirts (i.e. tightly woven linen) can protect skin from too much sun exposure
use a zinc oxide or titanium dioxide sunscreen—when outdoor exposure will be of some duration or occurs before a natural tan has had chance to gradually build up, use an organic and natural zinc oxide sunscreen (i.e. avoid problematic synthetic ingredients including paraben, benzophenone, cinnamate and 4-methyl-benzylidene camphor and ensure the sunscreen contains only natural or certified organic ingredients as the remainder of the product ingredient list).

Best Sunscreens - Brands

For specific brands of best sunscreens, check out Environmental Working Group's hot-off-the-press 2009 Sunscreen Ratings. Using the information on the site (i.e. awareness of potential allergens, user feedback) will help you determine which sunscreen suits your individual situation best.

Our family likes and uses ONEgroup's Reflect Outdoor Balm. We find it protects well—even on the pictured Christmas trip to Cancun—moisturizes well and is very soothing to the skin. (NB to fair-skinned husband and children, protects best when applied often enough!) In addition, because Reflect is totally eco-friendly we felt good about using it on our snorkeling and body surfing adventures.

Best Sunscreens in Action

Much as I like EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetic Database, however, and recommend it often, bear in mind a couple of caveats when using this site:

nano-technology—skin deep ratings do not give a negative score for products using nano-technology. Nanoparticles are less than 100 nanometres and, because of the change in properties of ingredients that small and the lack of long term studies on their use, there is some concern about skin care products containing nanoparticles. EWG has some excellent information on nanotechnology that is certainly worth a read, but even after reviewing the information, I prefer to err on the side of caution and suggest using skin care products and sunscreens that do not use nanotechnology in their production. So even if a sunscreen rates well on EWG's data base, but has ingredients (i.e. zinc oxide) that are nano-sized, I would suggest choosing another product that uses larger sized minerals. (Having said that, if you simply refuse to use the thicker sunscreens with non-nano-sized particles, you are likely better off using creamier products containing nano-sized zinc oxide and titanium dioxide than you are using products that give UVA protection via absorbing chemicals.)
natural ingredients—some ingredients that have a long history of safe use can come up on the Skin Deep data base with a poor rating. This could be due to a number of factors (i.e. concerns are re: potential contaminants that are not a factor with organic ingredients, studies may have been done on a non-food grade ingredient but the ingredient used in a product is food-grade and poses no harm) so if you like what you see on an ingredient list but see some EWG concerns, contact EWG and the product manufacturer and ask for clarification.
ingredient form—concerns may be with a certain form of an ingredient (i.e. zinc oxide and respiratory problems if the ingredient is breathed in large amounts) that are not relevant to the particular product you are evaluating (i.e. a sunscreen that is in a cream form and will not be breathed into the lungs).

Applying Best Sunscreens

The best time to first apply sunscreen is before you go outside. After you have been overly exposed to the sun, it is too late!

On the occasions when you use sunscreen (i.e. before a tan has built up, when you will have long exposure) it is best to apply sunscreen 15-30 minutes before exposure. Then, instead of the usual directions to re-apply every two hours , studies show that sunscreen may be more effective if applied both before exposure and then with a re-application of sunscreen 15-30 minutes after exposure begins.

In addition, re-application of sunscreen every two hours thereafter or after vigourous activity (i.e. physical exertion, swimming, toweling off) is still recommended.

If you haven't already, be sure to check out Begin Within Natural Skincare's other Sunscreen pages:

Take a look at Sunscreen Facts
and Sunscreen Ratings
as well as at Organic Sunscreen

Soon there will be additional Skin Problem information such as Types of Psoriasis, Rosacea, Anti-Aging Skin Care and Stretch Marks. Interested? Sign up for the RSS feed and be notified when new website content is posted.

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