Experts claim that going to the beach reduces your stress big time. As you expose yourself to the sunlight, the brain instantly produces an important hormone called serotonin, which could help regulate and improve appetite, mood, sleep, social behavior, digestion, and memory. With these benefits, no wonder why a lot of people love to spend their vacation at the beach and enjoy activities such as scuba diving, snorkeling, kayaking, and swimming.
One of the must-haves that should be included in your beach travel is your favorite handy sunscreen. Unfortunately, a recent study conducted by the US Food and Drug Administration revealed how some sunscreens could bring forth negativities instead of its promised benefits.
As reported by the Sun Sentinel, the FDA found out that some popular sunscreen available in the market nowadays has chemicals that can actually be absorbed by the body and can go directly to the bloodstream once used, which can be very toxic at high levels. Some of the chemicals found in these sunscreens that can be absorbed in the blood are oxybenzone, octocrylene, avobenzone, and ecamsule.
Given this risk, the FDA recently set a series of new guidelines, which they hope could update the regulation requirements for different sunscreens marketed in the United States. Through these guidelines, the organization is also looking forward to sunscreen brands to have their products approved based on the organization's most recent research to ensure the safest and most effective skin protection to their customers.
"Today's action is an important step in the FDA's ongoing effects to take into account modern science to ensure the safety and effectiveness of sunscreens", shared Dr. Scott Gottlieb, the FDA commissioner. By promoting these new guidelines, the organization is aiming for the Americans to have an improved, safe, high quality, and efficient sunscreens in the future.
The new sunscreen guidelines that the FDA has recently proposed includes the official designation of safe and effective sunscreens with only two sun-blocking ingredients, which include the titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. Another proposal also requires sun protection factor (SPF) levels to increase to 50+ to 60+ to offer maximum protection among users.
Furthermore, the FDA also recommends sellers and producers to make their products' active ingredients listed on its package for every user to see. By doing so, buyers will be able to analyze and decide for themselves whether the product is good for them or not, as posted by Health Line.
Meanwhile, there are several types of sunscreens available in the market nowadays. These sunscreens include creams, lotions, oils, gels, butter, pastes, sticks, ointments, and sprays.
