That time of year is upon us, or I hope it is soon, where we will feel the warmth of the sun upon our deprived skin. I love waking up in the morning, getting my morning coffee in hand and heading out on the deck to absorb some rays and relax.Back in my foolish youth I would sit outside all day, lathered in baby oil, and would bake..literally! Of course that was after I had spent a month or so tanning in a tanning bed, just so I would have a base tan and wouldn't burn outside :O) Oh, those were the good ole days of "ignorance is bliss", and it was.
Today I am trying to be responsible with the sun and how much exposure I get, along with my family. I buy my kids UV protective clothing, lather on the sunscreen, make them wear sunglasses and hats, etc. This year in my quest to be more 'green' about what we use I began researching sunscreens, remember when I said ignorance is bliss, well this is one of those situations.
I have come across countless studies that are now saying sunscreen may not protect you from harmful rays, but it may actually lead up to an increase in skin cancer! Sunscreens contain chemicals that once heated by the sun change into cancer causing free radicals! Yes, this upsets me! Where are the regulations, where is the integrity of the companies promoting these sunscreens?
We lather our kids up, we lather ourselves up and we think we are being responsible with the sun in doing so. The fact is that since we have started adding sunscreen to our skin they have noticed an INCREASE in melanoma, especially in places like Australia where sunscreen has been heavily promoted.
So what is the alternative? I have come across some companies that are chemical free, they use zinc and minerals to shield us from the harmful rays. These minerals reflect the UV rays rather then absorbing them.
Here are a few that are chemical free:
California Baby
Burt's Bees
Alba
There are many more available online. Bottom line, we can't blindly trust these cosmetic companies. The research is out there and it's scary. Thankfully there are alternatives for us.
