SPF Rulings

Hi Everyone. Believe it or not, body sunscreens are all the same to me. As long as it has an SPF 30 that blocks UVA and UVB rays, I use whatever I have in my house at the moment. I think I'm currently rotating between seven different brands (LOL)!

So you may or may not have read the FDA's new SPF rulings... Today I'd like to clarify some things about SPFs. Specifically, I'd like to discuss the current labeling, so when I discuss ingredient information next week, hopefully you can purchase your sunscreens with more confidence and knowledge :)

When a company has an SPF factor listed on it's sunscreen tube (no matter whether its a 4 or a 50) it means the company's sunscreen formula had to undergo testing for it's UVB ray protection factor. Basically, the protection factor refers to the amount of time you are protected from a certain percentage of the sun's UVB rays. To give you an idea of what makes gives sunscreen formulas different protection factors, companies can choose hemical sunscreen ingredients ie. Homosalate or physical ones--like Zinc Oxide--which create a physical barrier from the sun's rays.

Currently (and until June of 2012), sunscreen companies can make UVA protection claims on their sunscreen tubes, simply if their products contain one of a number of ingredients that the FDA has approved for UVA protection...no testing is necessary. The new rules are designed to help consumers understand the importance of Broad Spectrum protection, which means protection from BOTH UVB AND UVA rays. With the FDA's new sunscreen rules, every SPF formula must be tested for UVB Protection (to establish an SPF #), in addition to undergoing a UVA test. If the UVA test achieves a minimum requirement of 370nm of protection, then the sunscreen packaging may refer to "Broad Spectrum" protection. So, as of June 2012, you will be able to purchase two kinds of sunscreen: Broad spectrum SPF 30 (which protects from both UVB & UVA rays) or SPF 30 (UVB Protection only).

But again, all of the packaging changes will not occur until next year. So now that we've learned a few facts about Broad Spectrum (UVA and UVB) protection is, let's discuss ingredients to use in order to achieve the maximum protection possible. Tune in next Thursday for my recommendations on this front!