Sunscreen safety fears are undermining public health, experts say

Between a slip-up in SPF ratings and sloppy social media campaigns, suddenly sunscreen has been slapped with a bad rep. This is why we need to save our sunscreen, says Ann Wason Moore

Wear sunscreen.

It was the inestimable life advice offered back in 1997 via Baz Luhrmann’s unlikely hit song Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen), aka The Sunscreen Song.

“If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience,” said the spoken word track, narrated by Lee Perry.

Alas, fast-forward almost three decades, and that advice now needs to be qualified.

Between a slip-up in SPF ratings and sloppy social media campaigns, suddenly sunscreen has been slapped with a bad rep.

Recent testing has found that many sunscreens on Australian shelves do not provide the SPF protection claimed, with Choice reporting in June that 16 out of 20 products failed SPF standards.

Sunscreen safety fears are undermining public health, experts say

In July, a TGA review recommended lowering permitted levels of the chemical ingredients homosalate and oxybenzone over potential hormone risks, even though exposure from normal use remained well below dangerous levels.

Concerns have also emerged around mineral sunscreens, with Gold Coast-based MooGoo founder Craig Jones discovering batches of zinc-based SPF 15 and SPF 40 products underperformed in preliminary tests, raising questions about other brands using the same zinc supplier.

Meanwhile, the Australian Sunscreen Council, which describes itself as a peak industry body, is advocating for mineral sunscreens only, citing safety concerns about chemicals in other mainstream products. It’s a claim that experts caution is not only unfounded, but may discourage Australians from using sunscreen at all.

Former TGA policy adviser Amne Alrifai told the ABC that mineral sunscreen brands calling chemical sunscreens dangerous and toxic on social media was a public health concern.

“There’s nothing wrong with saying that your sunscreen is a mineral one … But starting to undermine the safety and integrity of chemical sunscreens is where the problem is,” she said.

“From an advertising perspective, you can’t undermine the safety, quality or efficacy of these products.

Moogoo Sunscreen collection. Photo: Moogoo

“I get really concerned about young and impressionable people who are getting all of their advice from social media … I would like to see people continuing to use their sunscreens and practice sun safety and not be turned away from products that are protecting them from really significant harm.”

Because that’s the biggest issue right now.

The simple truth is that the risk of skin cancer from sun exposure far outweighs any potential risk from sunscreen. In Australia, two in three people will get skin cancer at some point in their lives.

While I grew up under a far gentler northern sun, just a few teen years spent on Gold Coast beaches meant I was diagnosed with my first melanoma by my late 30s. And I have a fat scar on my back to prove it.

But, just like Baz’s song said, science proves that sunscreen is a great defence.

In fact, a study from the early 90s, using only SPF 16, found daily sunscreen use reduced the number of squamous cell carcinomas by 40 per cent, and reduced the number of invasive melanomas by 73 per cent.

Yet somehow sunscreen has become part of our culture wars.

Of all the (mole)hills to die on, I never picked sunscreen as a contender.

Unfortunately, the SPF slip-ups and TGA recommendation to reduce already-safe chemical levels is only lending credence to the social media conspiracy that sunscreen rather than the sun is what will harm you.

The ‘UV Truthers’ (yep, that’s a thing) are instead switching to the likes of coconut oil as a ‘natural alternative’, turning to specialised diets or claiming to have ‘built up a tolerance’ to the sun by gradually exposing their skin … none of which is supported by evidence.

And while they likely won’t see the efficacy, or lack thereof, of such ‘alternative’ methods for years, in the meantime we need to at least stop any in-fighting between sunscreen brands.

Somebody get Baz back in the studio … this is an SOS.

Save Our Sunscreen.