Does your go-to sunscreen contain suspected hormone disrupting chemicals?
A new study from the Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals has found that some sunscreens may contain suspected hormone disrupting chemicals, but that safer options are available.
The Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals scrutinised the ingredients lists of 27 sunscreens from brands such as Clarins, Garnier Ambre Solaire, Nivea and Piz Buin and ranked them based on their chemical content.
They found that it is possible to purchase sunscreens that do not contain unwanted chemicals – 12 of the 27 sunscreens received the highest ‘A’ rating. This means the ingredients lists for these products did not include problematic chemicals, such as those that are suspected to be hormone disruptors, allergenic or problematic for the environment.
However, 12 of the 27 sunscreens examined received the lowest ‘C’ rating as they contained suspected hormone disrupting sunlight filters. One sunscreen also contained a sunlight filter suspected to be damaging to both the hormone system and the environment.
The presence of suspected hormone disrupting chemicals in sunscreens can contribute to our overall exposure to chemicals. We are constantly exposed to a complex cocktail of known and suspected harmful chemicals from multiple sources such as air, water, food, and consumer products. Current regulations fail to sufficiently take this into account. Read more about the mixture effect in our report ‘Chemical Cocktails: The neglected threat of toxic mixtures and how to fix it’.
CHEM Trust is calling on the EU authorities and UK government to protect their citizens from harmful chemicals by introducing robust legislation to phase out the most harmful chemicals from consumer products by 2030.
The Danish Consumer Council THINK Chemicals suggests eight tips for staying safe in the sun, including avoiding the sun between noon and 3pm and covering up with clothing and sun hats. For more information read the World Health Organisation’s advice.
Find out how to reduce your risk of exposure to harmful chemicals in cosmetics here.
