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June 16, 2011 03:04 pm PDT

4 things you didn't know about sunscreen

Starting next year, sunscreen—and the way its marketed—will change. This is good news. The changes correct some rather glaring examples of consumer misinformation. And it's also important news ... at least, from the perspective of this redhead. New Food and Drug Administration regulations mean that, by the summer of 2012, there will be no such thing as "waterproof" sunscreen. That's because, frankly, there already wasn't such a thing. A sunscreen might be more water resistant than a competitor. But you can't assume that one application of the "waterproof" stuff will stay with you through hours of pool time. Next year, sunscreen bottles will be honest about that fact, and they'll tell you how long you can expect water resistance to last. The other big change: What the sunscreen protects you from. Under the new regulations, only broad-spectrum sunscreens—the kind that protect you from both the UVA and UVB wavelengths of solar radiation—with SPF values of 15 and higher, can claim to prevent skin cancer. Anything else must tell you that it's just for preventing sunburn. These changes bring marketing into line with evidence, which always a good thing where public health is concerned. But, to me, they also bring up an important issue that remains unresolved. More and more Americans are using sunscreen. But that's not the same thing as more Americans understanding sunscreen. Information is important, and packaging can only be expected to do so much. With that in mind, I present this short guide to the seldom-discussed details behind an everyday product....


Original Link: http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/4R9IWTi3lkE/4-things-you-didnt-k.html

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