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What to Look for in Natural Sunscreen
Summer’s the perfect time for soaking up the sun as you create fun, warm memories. Whether you’re relaxing by the pool, taking your family on gorgeous hikes, or helping your children run a lemonade stand, you’ll want to properly protect everyone’s skin from dangerous UV rays.
Sunscreen is essential to summer fun, but many commercial brands contain harmful ingredients. You need sunscreen that’ll protect you and your family from both the sun and damaging chemicals.
Consider using a mineral sunscreen. Mineral and chemical sunscreens both protect the skin, but chemical sunscreen absorbs UV rays, while mineral sunscreen reflects them. While it’d be nice to simply check for a “chemical” or “mineral” label on the bottle, leading brands aren’t likely to advertise so plainly. Instead, check your sunscreen for the following ingredients:
- Oxybenzone
- Octinoxate
- Avobenzone
- Homosalate
- Octocrylene
- Cinoxate
- Dioxybenzone
- Ensulizole
- Meradimate
- Padimate O
- Sulisobenzone
If these ingredients aren’t on the label, there’s a good chance the sunscreen is mineral. Also look for “broad spectrum,” which promises the sunscreen will protect you from both UVA and UVB rays. Mineral sunscreen acts as a physical barrier, immediately reflecting UV rays for broad-spectrum protection without degrading upon exposure.
The most common mineral sunscreen filter is zinc oxide, which is recognized as generally safe for all skin types. Zinc oxide comes in different particle sizes: nano and non-nano. Nano particles are small enough to potentially be absorbed into the bloodstream, which is what you don’t want. Non-nano particles are bigger, meaning they can’t be absorbed the same way.
Your sun care should also nourish your skin. It’s important to help your skin stay both happy and healthy during your fun in the sun. You can support your skin by nourishing and soothing it with SPF products, with ingredients like bisabolol, aloe vera, tocopherol—more commonly known as vitamin E—raspberry seed oil, shea butter, and more.
The good news is doTERRA has you covered with natural sun care! When we created the doTERRA sun product line, we knew we had to meet three key criteria:
Our formulas are nourishing, antioxidant-rich, and hydrating. They also leave minimal residue and are free of the harsh, synthetic ingredients listed above. Our products instead contain restorative, nourishing, and soothing ingredients to protect your skin.
Shop the doTERRA sun product line if you’re ready to add natural SPF protection to your summer tote bag!
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