Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Natural Sunscreen Results and Recipes

Reposted from last summer. We will use our homemade sunscreen again this year.
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The natural sunscreens(see links below) that I purchased earlier this summer have been working very well. We've been spending hours out in the sun at water and amusement parks this year, and we've had no sunburns. They are not waterproof, but seem to stay on the skin well even when perspiring. I've been stretching them by squirting the sun screen into a travel size pump bottle and adding a little oil(almond). The natural sunscreen that I've purchased really needed it anyway - too difficult to spread.

The main ingredient is zinc oxide(not oxybenzone, a suspected hormone disruptor), the kind you see on lifeguards noses in the summer. It's very white on the skin, so as you can imagine, this natural sunscreen can leave white streaks if not oiled down a little. I'm sure this reduces it's SPF, but so far we've not had any problems.

I'm going to try a natural sunscreen for the hair and scalp(my part). I'm thinking zinc oxide, water, aloe vera, and maybe a little flat beer might work well as a spray.

Does your sunscreen work? Surprisingly, 3 of 5 brand-name sunscreens either don’t protect skin from sun damage or contain hazardous chemicals — or both. An Environmental Working Group investigation of 1,625 sunscreens rates the season’s best — and worst.

Zinc Oxide Sunscreen vs Titanium Oxide Sunscreen

Stretching Pricey Safer Sunscreens

Safer Sunscreen

A few recipes that I found online, but have not tried yet:

Organic Natural Sunscreen Recipe

Homemade Zinc Oxide Sunscreen


Homemade Sunscreen

and

Handy SPF Table

Zinc Oxide Powder

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