Make good decisions about your sun protection products

Summer is here and market season has begun! As a farmer’s market vendor that makes body care products, there are some questions I get asked a lot. One of those questions is if I make sunscreen. In short, the answer is ‘no,’ but I wanted to take the opportunity to share information and tell you why.

Sunscreen has an Active Ingredient (like Zinc Oxide or Titanium Dioxide) that is included to provide a dependable and predictable level of protection from the sun, or Sun Protection Factor (SPF). Because of the Active Ingredient, sunscreen is considered to be a “drug” by the FDA, and is subject to a different level of testing than body care.

If you are fair skinned and are going to be exposed to intense sun like spending the day near big water, at high elevation or close to the equator, you want to rely on a product that has been tested to deliver a specific level of protection from the sun.

Whenever people stop by my booth asking about sunscreen I talk about the difference in the purpose of the products. Apothecuryous offers products that are formulated to improve the quality of the skin. I suggest that if people ever find a vendor offering sunscreen in a farmers market or similar setting, to ask the maker if it has been “Tested to Meet Label Claims”. If it has met these testing standards, you can be assured that their product should deliver the SPF indicated on the label.

As a formulator who makes virtually every personal care product that I use, I buy my sunscreen. I like Goddess Garden and All Good brands which are widely available in drug stores, natural grocery stores and big box stores.

Make good decisions about your skin, it needs to last a lifetime.