Concerned Mom has a question…I am afraid because I hear how dangerous sunblock is but Baby Silk Babysafe Sunscreen Towelettes says it’s natural and made of silk would this be a good substitute?
The Beauty Brains respond:
While you certainly want to be careful about what you put on your baby’s skin, the dangers of sunscreen are over-exaggerated. And speaking of exaggeration, let’s take a look at this product.
Is silk a good sunscreen?
Even though the product is called a “Baby Silk Sunscreen” it actually contains the physical sunblocking agents Titanium Dioxide and Zinc Oxide. That’s a good thing when it comes to sensitive skin since these mineral agents are less likely to be irritating than the more reactive UV absorbers. (Yes, some UV absorbers can be irritating to skin but that doesn’t mean they’re dangerous.) But there’s no reason to spend more money on this product just because of that! There are plenty of other products on the market that are based on these active ingredients.
What about the silk that you asked about? That’s where the exaggeration really kicks in. Silk is NOT a sunscreen. If you read their website carefully you’ll notice that all they say is that their “Marine Silk Complex and antioxidants help protect and strengthen the skin.” While silk can form a protective film at high concentrations we’ve never seen data to suggest it can “strengthen” skin.
The website also lists all the “nasty” chemicals that this product doesn’t contain like phthalates, lanolin, mineral oil, petroleum, waxes or PABA. As noted above, PABA is one of the sunscreens that can be irritating but lanolin, mineral oil and petrolatum are safely used in plenty of other baby products. Surprisingly, they don’t mention the product DOES contain one type of ingredient that generates more controversy than almost any other: parabens.
That’s right, as you can see from the ingredient list below, this product contains methylparaben and propylparaben. And while we agree with the scientific data that shows these preservatives are safe for general use, we’re also aware that there is at least one study suggesting they shouldn’t be applied to abraded infant skin. If we were looking for the safest sunscreen for infants we might consider one with an alternate preservative system. See the discussion in our Forum for more details.)
The Beauty Brains bottom line
These Babysafe Towelettes are probably perfectly fine for your infant. But don’t be fooled into spending a lot more money because you think that the silk makes them better. There are other products that will do the same thing yet cost a lot less.
Baby Silk Babysafe Sunscreen Towelettes Ingredients
Active Ingredients: Titanium Dioxide (8.0%)
Zinc Oxide (5.0%)
Other ingredients:
Water (Aqua), Cyclopentasiloxane, Dimethicone, Isononyl Isononanoate, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, 1,3 Propanediol, Lauryl PEG-9 Polydimethylsiloxyethyl Dimethicone, Pentylene Glycol, Tocopheryl Acetate, Panthenol, Dimethicone/PEG-10/15 Crosspolymer, Dimethicone/Vinyl Dimethicone Crosspolymer, Methicone, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract, Hydrolyzed Silk, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Hydrolyzed Elastin, Glycerin, Sodium Citrate, Sodium Chloride, Aluminum Hydroxide, Citric Acid, Disodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Fragrance (Parfum).
Image credit: http://pixabay.com
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My brothers friends grandma who takes care of my brothers friend thinks that sunblock will give you cancer so when she took her grandson and my brother to a lake house they were outside for 10 hrs without any sunblock at all!! She says only the organic ones are safe because her husband is really into the “dangers of cosmetics” or whatever. My grandmother had skin cancer so my dad was beyond pissed when my brother came back painfully burnt red like a tomato.