Regardless of skin type, we all need protection from harmful rays that can damage or cause our skin. forms of cancer. The sunscreen is made of carbon-containing molecules either absorb light or reflect it away from the skin, but a problem is when the same ingredients have been reported as harmful to the environment, especially coral reefs. As a result, some manufacturers have engaged in marketing “safe reef” sunscreen, but it’s probably not worth worrying about.
While there are a few precautions you should look for in sunscreen, coral reef damage should not be on the list. Here’s what we know about the effects of sunscreen on the environment and what “safe” sunscreen should be.
Do not change your sunscreen to save the coral reef
Sun protection protects our skin from two types of harmful sun rays: UVB and UVA rays. UVB rays are the ones that cause redness and burning of the skin, while UVA rays are caused by skin cancer such as melanoma. There are also two forms of sun protection: physical and chemical. Skin cancer The foundation provides a clear definition of the two.
Physical (mineral) sunscreen ingredients (including titanium dioxide and zinc oxide minerals) block and scatter the rays before they penetrate the skin.
Chemical Sunscreen ingredients (such as avobenzone and octisalate) absorb UV rays before they can damage your skin.
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One 2016 study, the chemical form of sunscreen proved to be harmful to coral reefs and added to the problem “coral bleaching, ”But a more recent study found “no quantifiable levels” of the harmful chemical on the surface seawater or in the corals themselves. Doctor of Chemistry and creator of scientific content Dr. Michelle Wong is an expert on the subject and alleviates any concern about the level of destruction of sunscreen caused by coral reefs.
“It is always possible that sunscreen will have an effect on coral reefs, but the evidence so far indicates that sunscreen does not have a big impact,” explains Wong. “The ocean is massive, so any sunscreen that enters it dilutes very quickly.”
The real problem lies in the mass production of materials, such as plastics, over agriculture and pollutants that contribute to climate change. Wong points out that most companies that include natural ingredients “are very energy consuming.” When you think you are solving a problem, create another one.
Why you should use physical sunscreen
Sunscreen does not travel through the water in sufficient quantities to help whiten or damage coral reefs. If you’re going to swim just above the coral reef on your next dive trip, Dr. Wong recommends that it’s “best to avoid ingredients that have had a greater impact in laboratory studies, namely oxybenzone and octinoxate.”
If you want to protect yourself and do a little part for the environment, choose a physical sunscreen. Physical sunscreens use titanium dioxide or zinc oxide chemicals to create a barrier between your skin and UVA or UVB rays; they are not exactly “natural”, but are not known to cause bleaching of coral reefs.
“Many of the sunscreens marketed as ‘reef safe’ have poor textures and cause white skin burns, which means people are less likely to use them and end up on the shelf, which is not good for the environment , ”Says Dr. Wong. This does not mean that you throw away all sunscreen and run to buy new tubes, of course, but the next time you run out of sunscreen, consider avoiding oxybenzone and octinoxate.