Sunscreen

I have never been a sunscreen wearer. Before I had Levi I had only had one sunburn in my whole life and that was when I was 21. After Levi it it was more frequent. I don't know if it is due to age or hormones or what. But since I'm only 23 I'm guessing it's not age ;) My kids have never had burns, but Levi is more fair than Elyse so I usually have him wear a shirt to the beach. But I think we pretty much got lucky in the dark skin department and I really never have to worry if we are out in the sun for too long.

Over the past few years I have bought a few different kinds of sunscreens. Alba and Badger balm both have pretty good products. But it is so hard to know, is titanium dioxide safe or not? Is Zinc safe? So, I found this article that explains things a bit more clearly for me.

http://www.organicmakeup.ca/ca/titaniumdioxide.asp (the 2nd to last paragraph explains nanoparticles)

and this one.

http://www.badgerbalm.com/s-33-zinc-oxide-and-nanoparticles.aspx

Honestly it really bothers me when I see people spraying that toxic stuff on their kids and inadvertently me (when it's windy)  No offense to anyone who does do it, but not only are they (and others sitting close by) inhaling it but it is absorbed by their skin. Oxybenzone, (to name just one chemical of many in personal care products) which is in many sunscreens, is a hormone disruptor. The best protection against the sun is covering up but we don't all like to do that. (especially not me...I likes to be tan!)

So, if you must wear sunscreen, spend the money and buy a good mineral brand like Badger or COOLA which looks super clean and uses NO nano particles. I had an online deal to COOLA so I got mine last week. Also check out  http://breakingnews.ewg.org/2011sunscreen/ and see what rating your sunscreen gets.

Here is a little tid bit from the EWG site. http://breakingnews.ewg.org/2011sunscreen/sunscreens-exposed/sunscreens-exposed-9-surprising-truths/

Please spend the money and buy a good quality sunscreen. Why have cancer rates been rising even as more people are wearing sunscreen? Could it be the crap sunscreens or other lotions that we are slathering on our skin each day? Please try to limit your chemical exposure by using coconut oil or other natural oils on your skin instead of lotions. You can use Dr Bronner's castille soap for everything, body, dish, hands, hair. Also Black soap can be used the same way. Who says that babies need to be washed with harsh chemicals....are they really that dirty? Are you? Yes it is more expensive, but not by that much. And isn't it worth it?

I will step off my soap box now, thank you for reading.