05/15/2025
Did you know? Natural Sunscreens:
Coconut oil: SPF 7
Shea butter: SPF 4
Olive oil: SPF 8
Blackberry extract: SPF 50+
Alexandrian laurel (aka Tamanu oil): SPF 20
T-shirt/long-sleeve: UPF 50+ (blocks radiation, UVA rays)
These are a "nice to know" grouping... though you will generally need additional coverage.
A minimum of SPF 15 is recommended for longer exposure to the sun, however getting an SPF 70 may be more suitable for sensitive skin types.
For the math nuts: Sun Protection Factor, or SPF of 7 = about 43% protection. An SPF of 30 = about 97% protection.
Further translation of SPF ratings are as follows:
- SPF 30: 97% protection = 3/100 photons are allowed through
- SPF 50: 98% protection = 2/100 photons are allowed through
- SPF 70: 99% protection = 1/100 photons are allowed through
*No sunscreen has 100% protection.
*********** TO NOTE ************
American sunscreens generally only protect from UVB rays.
European sunscreens will protect from UVA rays, or both. Their rating system is "PA" vs. "SPF", with PPD values attributed to them.
UVA rays come through on cloudy days. UVB are necessary for Vitamin D synthesis.
Lastly, read your ingredient labels for anything that ends in "one"; these are endocrine disruptors and your skin is your largest organ!
For further reading:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10272908
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4374016
Company that seems to have good products that we'd like to try! π
https://www.nativeextracts.com/products/blackberry-cellular-extract
Although solar exposure is necessary for human health, phototoxicology induced by excessive UVB and UVA radiation, which involves sunburns, skin aging and even tumorigenesis, has been widely researched. Sunscreen is one of the most important ways to ...