Cecil says…Heard something on the news about new sunscreen laws. What’s up with what?
The Beauty Brains respond:
Even though it’s the start of winter here in the U.S. it’s also the start of a new era of sunscreen regulations. Sort of.
Sunscreen summary
The new law is really a modification of what the FDA calls the “Final Rule.” Here’s a quick summary of the important points:
1. Clearer explanations of what the products can and can’t do
Going forward only products that provide definitive broad spectrum UV protection (meaning that they protect from both UVA and UVB) will be allowed to make claims related to skin cancer and anti-aging. Non- broad spectrum will only be able to talk about protecting you from sunburn and they’ll have to carry a warning that they DON’T protect against skin cancer. This should make it easier for you to identify the most efficacious products.
2. No changes on product form…yet
Dosage forms other than lotion (like sprays, powders, and sticks) are still under scrutiny and will probably get additional regulations in the future.
3. Little change on nanotechnology (pun intended)
Nanotechnology continues to be a controversial issue as it relates to sunscreens. That’s because there is concern that the health effects of small particles of mineral sunscreens are not fully understood. However, as of this time, both the FDA and the Personal Care Products Council believe that current scientific data shows these tiny particles do not penetrate skin and therefore there are no new regulations on nanoparticles in sunscreen.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I understand it is a big challenge to get product to penetrate anyways. I wouldnt worry about it everyone just hears nano and thinks its some futuristic evil and freaks out.
This makes me incredibly happy to hear! Especially the first part. With all we know about sun protection now, I was waiting for there to be more defined standards.
Looks like the European Commission Scientific Committees has research updates on Nano Zinc (declared safe; pg. 3) and nano-sized Titanium Dioxide (up for evaluation, pg. 5): http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/news/newsletters/december_2012_en.pdf. I thik their sunscreen research and updates are light years ahead of FDA ; )
It’s so good that it will be easy to avoid products without UVA protection. Could this mean that the products without it will lose sales? I wonder if companies will reformulate products and add UVA protection, or if they will phase out the old products and introduce all-new sunscreen brands.