When it comes to comes to buying safe and effective sunscreen, your chances are 1 in 5. Fortunately, the Environmental Working Group's 2011 Sunscreen Guide can help.
Having surveyed more than 1,700 sun care products, they offer a complete guide to finding the best option for you, whether you're looking for lip balm with SPF or the standard beach and sport sunscreen.
With no federal regulation by the Food and Drug Administration, ingredients that put people at rick for endocrine disruption and expedited skin tumor developments are still being found in products. "Without firm guidelines consumers only have a 1 in 5 chance of picking a safe and effective sunscreen from store shelves," according to EWG senior analyst Sonya Lunder.
This year, EWG has released their most comprehensive sunscreen guide to date. Researches have identified the best beach and sport sunscreens, the best lip balms with SPF, the best moisturizers with SPF, and the best makeup with SPF.
When choosing a sunscreen, the guide advises to steer clear of oxybenzone and retinyl palmitate (sometimes listed as vitamin A), choosing creams over sprays, and for sun protection, try wearing sunglasses, hats, and protective clothing.
Need some sunscreen buying tips? Want to look up your favorite sunscreen? Head over to EWG's 2011 Sunscreen Guide now.