SUN CARE
The great sunscreen cover-up
Sunscreen ingredients and formulations continue to be one of the most hotly debated issues in the cosmetics industry. This is mostly because there are so many conflicting opinions and regulations regarding what is safe for both customers and the environment, depending on where you are in the world and what standards you follow. Add to this the move towards natural, organic and sustainable ingredients and you have fertile ground for confusion and misinformation.
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ccording to Robyn Brown, owner of Botanichem and a formulator with more than 30 years’ experience, one of the
realise is that natural alternatives like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are also harmful to reefs. “Just because a UV filter is naturally
biggest challenges facing companies wanting to formulate sunscreens is addressing the perception that organic and natural ingredients are good for the environment and, in particular, our oceans and coral reefs. “All the hype and focus on the harmful effects of sunscreens on coral reefs and other aquatic environments and the subsequent banning of certain ingredients in places like Hawaii, Australia, Florida Keys and a host of other island territories, have forced skin care manufacturers to look at alternative formulations and ingredients,” she explains. However, whilst UV filters and other ingredients including oxybenzone, octinoxate, octocrylene, homosalate, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor, PABA, parabens and triclosan are all thought to have a negative effect on marine environments, what many do not
sourced does not mean it does not cause damage, is bio-degradable or better for the environment,” says Brown. “Both titanium dioxide and zinc oxide produce hydrogen peroxide when exposed to solar radiation. Hydrogen peroxide is a strong oxidising agent,
FEBRUARY 2022 // WWW.PHARMACOS.CO.ZA
which diminishes the quality of the water. This is one of the main issues affecting the health of coral and other marine life.”
A HOLISTIC APPROACH WITH ECOSUN PASS Formulating sunscreens that meet reef-friendly criteria and are natural and/or organic is essentially impossible at this stage, as the UV filters proven
"Formulating sunscreens that meet reef-friendly criteria … is essentially impossible at this stage"
