Here comes the sun...

As I packed the car for our Memorial Day trek to Stinson Beach, California, I made certain not to forget the sunscreen. Dream on….

During most of our stay the fog whipped through our sandy hamlet, making Patagonia the de rigueur fashion option. We lit fires, played baseball against the dunes and nosed around for sea glass at the water’s edge. But during one delicious break in the clouds the other moms and I frantically searched for our fresh summer tubes, slathered some noses and compared notes on what we now carry in our beach bags.

You see, if you are a friend of mine you generally know that I might have a “helpful” opinion on the safest options for our skin these days. And you can safely assume that I now shiver at the sight of a pink Water Babies bottle, which was my sun protection of choice for the past seven summers. This brand, like many others we used on our children, rates a “7” in the Cosmetics Database toxic hazards scale. The primary culprit, oxybenzone or benzophenone-3. http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/product.php?prod_id=17091

Oxybenzone is UV filtering agent, but it is also a penetration enhancer and it absorbs through the skin. Very significantly the sunlight can cause oxybenzone to trigger free radical chemicals to damage skin cells and components of the skin’s extra cellular support system like collagen and elastin.

Further, benzophenone and its derivatives have been found in laboratories to be estrogenic, causing endocrine disruption. In a recent Japanese study, some of the benzophenone substances appeared to be more estrogenic than bisphenol-A, which is currently undergoing a witch hunt in Canada and now the United States. For an interesting further perspective on the bisphenol-A revelations, you can read this article in Discover Magazine online. http://discovermagazine.com/2008/may/18-the-dirty-truth-about-plastic/article_view?b_start:int=3&-C= A bill has recently been introduced in our Senate to institute a ban of bisphenol-A in infant and early childhood products.

But back to benzophenones which have also been tied to thyroid disfunction, as well as low birth rate for baby girls with mothers who used the product while pregnant. Perhaps you won’t be surprised when I mention that the FDA has not tested the safety of this chemical since 1978!

Significantly, its not just our kids we need to worry about. From the British Independent newspaper, an article in January of 2006 reported, “Scientists at the University of California, Riverside, found that two-thirds of the male turbot and sole near a sewage outfall three miles off the surfers' paradise of Huntington Beach, near Los Angeles, were growing ovary tissue in their testes. A similar study by the Southern California Coastal Water Research Project found fish affected all along the coast. The American research is the first to find sex changes in fish in the open ocean. The University of California scientists found that the only culprit they could ‘exclusively identify’ is oxybenzone, used to protect the skin from the ultraviolet component of sunlight. Oxybenzone, which mimics estrogen's chemical make-up, is washed off tanned bodies in the shower, passes through sewage works unchanged and settles on the seabed, where bottom-feeding fish eat it.”

Since it is estimated that 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer in some form during their lifetime, we need to protect our skin from the sun’s harmful rays. What I have learned is that a broad spectrum UVA/UVB is best, the former tackles the damage linked to aging, immune system problems and potential skin cancer, while the latter fights against sunburn. Most sunscreens only remain effective for 80 minutes and need to be reapplied after swimming.

SPF 15 protects against 93% of UV rays, SPF 30 against 97% and SPF 50-60 jumps up a mere 1% to 98. Here is the key – the higher the SPF, the more harsh chemicals in the product so better to stick with the lower-test option and remember to re-apply. And although they are SO convenient, when spraying aerosol sunscreens, a lot of the protection is lost during transfer. Also, do you really want your kids breathing those small chemical particles directly into their lungs while they squinch their faces and beg you to be done with it! Yikes!

While I have already mentioned a particular concern for the oxybenzone/benzophenone family, I also choose to avoid parabens, PABA and sodium laureth sulfate in our sunscreens. I will say that I have a large collection of Coppertone, Banana Boat, Neutrogena and many other brands now relegated to the discard pile in the garage. It all now makes perfect sense to me why we are warned NOT to use these products on children less than six months old. The companies who make them know they are dangerous to developing bodies.

My number one choice for the kids now is California Baby, which utilizes a non-penetrating titanium dioxide that sits on top of the skin scattering and reflecting UV rays and offers UVA/UVB broad-spectrum protection. This company has signed the Environmnetal Working Group’s Campaign for Safe Cosmetics which means that it is committed to delivering products to consumers that do NOT contain potentially damaging chemical additives. http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/product.php?prod_id=91464&refurl=%2Fwordsearch.php%3Fquery%3Dcalifornia+baby+sunscreen%26

I am often asked what I use on my 40+ skin and the answer these days is Vanicream, which was recommended by my dermatologist.

While it’s definitely important to protect ourselves, and especially the fresh, sensitive skin of our little ones, it’s critical to understand that a lot of the products we have commonly used may be doing more harm than good. In addition, science has revealed that sun is the most efficient source of essential Vitamin D, which is now linked to better protection against breast, colon, prostate, ovarian and kidney cancer as well as other medical conditions such as MS and cardiac hypertension. Unless you find yourself in scorching conditions, it’s a great idea to give your skin a little chance to salute the sun without a barrier, even daily if you can.

To sign off, I’m going to take a fun, but relevant tangent away from chemicals and radicals. When I started to think about sunscreen yesterday, this song popped into my head. Here are the words of Kurt Vonnegut's Commencement Address at MIT, released by Baz Luhrmann as "Everybody's free (to wear sunscreen). The Sunscreen Song (class of '99)." Not bad advice if you ask me!

Ladies and gentlemen of the class of '99: Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience.

I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded.

But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked.

You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside you at 4 p.m. on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy. Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself. Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how...

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees. You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much, or berate yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room. Read the directions, even if you don't follow them. Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good. Be nice to your siblings. They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future. Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on.

Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse. But you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85. Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

Comments

[Christine Gardner]

I received another great recommendation from a friend who is a pediatrician. She uses the ColoreScience Sunforgettable Brush SPF 30 on her kids:

http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/product.php?prod_id=39552

[Christine Gardner]

Avobenzone (or Parsol 1789) along with Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide are the only three commonly used ingredients (in the U.S.) that can protect against the long ray UVA rays, which cause wrinkles and skin damage.

Avobenzone is a skin penetrator and a free radical generator, which means it can enter the bloodstream and possibly contribute to damaging our DNA. Avobenzone is NOT effective in protecting against the UVB rays which cause sunburn.

In addition, this chemical typically degrades when exposed to sunlight and begins to lose its effectiveness within just one hour.

While researching this response I found an incredibly thorough and interesting article for additional reference.

http://www.skinbiology.com/toxicsunscreens.html

Bottom line, while Avobenzone is not as toxic as Oxybenzone, I would recommend that you look at broad spectrum protection using Titanium Dioxide or Zinc Oxide which can tackle the UVA and UVB rays most effectively.

[jodi]

Does this go for anything with 'benzone' at the end (ie., avobenzone)? I am looking at my 'green' sunscreen and thinking it is not so green anymore...

[Francesca]

I'm so glad you put that song at the end, it was such a cool way to finish off the blog.. I love it!
you can also watch the video of it on You Tube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfq_A8nXMsQ
and sing along to it!