Sunscreen is a blessing for the skin. However, sunscreen can cause skin problems. If you want to prevent skin problems, be aware of this ingredient.

Sunscreen is the most important aspect of skincare. It is a complex category in the skincare world. It is commonly referred to by many as an antidote. It helps reduce signs of aging, prevents skin damage and even fights skin cancer. Not all sunscreens are the same. A new study found that sunscreens can become toxic within two hours of application.

Is your sunscreen safe to use?

The study, published in the journal Photochemical & Photobiological Science, addressed common questions: What about the safety of chemical products that result from exposure to sunlight? What are the stability, safety, and effectiveness of sunscreen components in combination? This is how FDA approves them. And what about any chemical products that are a result of reactions caused by sunlight exposure?

James Hutchinson, Aurora Ginzburg, and Richard Blackburn, both of the University of Leeds, developed five combinations that combine UV filters, the active chemicals in sunscreens, from various products in the United States and Europe. They also created more combinations with the same ingredients and less zinc oxide than what is recommended by the manufacturer. Next, the researchers exposed the mixtures to UV radiation for two hours. Then they used spectroscopy to determine photostability. This is the ability to see what happens to chemicals and their UV protection.

Researchers then tested whether UV light could make the mixtures hazardous to ZZebrafish This popular model organism can go from egg to swimming in just five days. According to the researchers, the UV-exposed mix without zinc oxide didn’t affect the fish.

Zinc Oxide in Your Sunscreen Can Make You Toxic

A partnership of scientists at Oregon State University found that sunscreens containing zinc oxide lose much of their effectiveness after being exposed to UV light for two hours. Zebrafish have remarkable similarities to humans on the molecular, genetic and cellular levels. This makes many of the zebrafish studies directly applicable to people.

Tanguay is an OSU distinguished professor who is also an international expert on toxicology. He stated, “Our findings indicate that commercially available small-molecule formulas, which are the basis of the formulas we examined, can be combined with different ingredient ratios to minimize photodegradation. Scientists noticed significant changes in phototoxicity and photostability when zinc oxide particles were introduced.

Santillan stated, “Zinc oxide degraded organic mixtures with either size of particle and caused more than 80 percent loss in organic filter protection for ultraviolet-A radiation which makes up 95% of the UV radiation reaching the Earth.”

“Also, the zinc-oxide-induced photosensitization products caused significant increases of defects in the zebrafish that we used to test for toxicity. This suggests that zinc oxide particles may be causing aquatic ecosystems to become more toxic. Tanguay was surprised that all five small-molecule combinations were photostable. However, it wasn’t surprising that zinc oxide particles increased toxicity when exposed to UV light.