Comment by gwittel | Hacker News Reader

Comment by gwittel | Hacker News Reader

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We went through a similar search recently. Part of the challenge is that the US rules are well behind Europe and Asia in terms of whats OK or not ingredient wise. With the new push toward reef friendly ingredients, it also complicates things. Physical barriers like Zinc generally offer reasonable UVB (this is the SPF rating) protection, but poor UVA (not sure there is a rating in US, but you'll see PA++++... on imports).

Ingredients approved in EU and Asia that offer solid UVA and UVB protections are not yet legal in the US [1]. So we get older 'less good' or 'less reef friendly' ingredients instead.

We ended up buying some imported from EU sunscreen. The US market formulation was actually different and lacked the UVA protection.

[1] https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/official-correspondence/co...

Just curious, what EU brand/brands did you end up going with? I couldn't find anything specific to that on the EWG website.

I use the Shiseido brand on my family. They are benzene-free according to ConsumerLab and Valisure. I believe they are Japanese but readily available in the US. As a bonus, it is probably the best-feeling sunscreen I've used (lightweight and not clammy). Downside is a large bottle is almost $50.

Currently using:

* La Roche Posay Dermo Pediatrics Lotion SPF 50. There is a USA version, but its a different active ingredient vs the EU version. EU version has UVA/UVB ratings, US version is UVB only due to different active ingredients.

* UltraSun Face Fluid SPF 50

Previously used:

* Anessa and Shiseido. Preferred the above for both feel and performance.

* Think Kids/Baby SPF 50 (Zinc). Its OK as a physical barrier, but lacks UVA protection. They also just reformulated it so unclear how performance is impacted.

I'm not sure what EWG will say about the EU ingredients. EWG tends to be very cautious, possibly too cautious. They give me vibes of natural=best or over alarmist; leaving out context (requires 100000x normal dose, etc.).

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