This weekend marks the unofficial beginning of summer!
I want to say ‘Yay’, but we are still waiting for the sun here in San Diego. We always have ‘May gray’ or ‘June gloom’, but it’s been a ‘Gray 2023’ so far. Who knows when summer will arrive?
My husband + I escaped to Moab, Utah last week to reconnect with sun + warmth. It felt so good to be outside without a jacket. To feel the sun on our faces.
Maybe you’re ready for it, too. Summer? The sun? Outdoor adventures?
If so, this post is for you.
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CANCER SUCKS
No one wants skin cancer. But, it’s one of the most common cancers. In fact, more people are diagnosed with skin cancer each year in the U.S. than all other cancers combined.
Apparently, having 5 or more sunburns doubles your risk for melanoma.
I definitely fit that category. In my younger years, I would get burned at least once every summer - especially that first time out.
Even so, I avoided sunscreen because ultimately, it kept me from getting tan. Instead, I opted for oils + lotions that would do the opposite of protecting. I seemed to think that first burn was the base of a great summer tan.
I’ve been lucky so far to not have any issues, but I see my dermatologist twice a year just to keep an eye on all of my damage.
Since one in five of us develops skin cancer by the age of 70, my generation did the opposite with our kids. We slathered them heavily in sunscreen to ensure there would be no chance of them getting skin cancer later in life.
Of course, no one told us what was in the sunscreen!
HORMONAL HAVOC
We figured out how to protect our skin from getting burned with these amazing chemical sunscreen formulas, but we don’t have any system in place for assessing ingredients for safety before they come to market.
So, now we are starting to understand the ramifications of some of this stuff + how these ingredients wreak havoc on our hormonal systems.
Many of the ingredients in chemical sunscreen are endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). They affect things like your adrenals, your thyroid, as well as the hormones that your ovaries make (like estrogen, progesterone + testosterone).
They’ve also been linked to cancer, thyroid disease, birth defects, infertility + even lowered IQ!
Of course, it’s not just sunscreens. EDCs exist in a lot of our everyday products - personal care, household cleaners, makeup, takeout food containers, grocery receipts, etc.
Please realize, I don’t say any of this to scare or overwhelm you. It’s just something we need to be aware of so we can do what we need to do to support our hormones the best we can.
Because it’s Skin Cancer Awareness Month + because we are all gearing up for summer to begin, it’s a great time to grab your sunscreen, flip it over, read the ingredient list + see what you’ve got.
Is it safe? How can you tell?
When I first started to learn about all of this, I remember standing in the aisle at Target staring at all of the sunscreens + having NO clue how to choose a safe one. It was totally overwhelming.
I think it’s even harder now because there is so much greenwashing. You have to be careful to not assume something is safe simply because it says ‘natural’ or ‘organic’ or ‘ocean friendly’ on the packaging. Instead, you really have to know your ingredients.
So, let’s break it down.
4 sunscreen ingredients to avoid:
Go grab your favorite sunscreen + take a look at the ingredients. Do you see any of these listed? If so, time for a new sunscreen!
Oxybenzone - known as benzophenone-3, a hormone disruptor
Homosalate - another hormone disruptor
Octinoxate - known as octyl methoxycinnamate, a hormone + endocrine disruptor
Parabens - endocrine disrupting preservatives, look for ingredient names like methylparaben, propylparaben, isoparaben or butylparaben.
Some others to avoid: Ingredients recently proposed by FDA as not generally recognized as safe + effective due to insufficient data: avobenzone, cinoxate, dioxybenzone, ensulizole, meradimate, octisalate, octocrylene, padimate O + sulisobenzone. (See resources below for reference.)
DOES IT REALLY MATTER?
When you start to learn about hormonal health, you realize how important it is to support your hormonal balance by minimizing your exposure to EDCs where you can.
We tend to think ‘the dose makes the poison’ (that a little bit doesn’t matter as much), but EDCs behave very differently than other chemicals. They act on the body at very low doses + in ways not predicted by conventional toxicology. Low-dose exposures can show up in all kinds of ways leading to low thyroid function, insulin resistance, etc.
If you’re like me + in the midst of perimenopause, you know that ANYTHING you can do to help support your hormones is high on the priority list at this stage. Even small disruptions can make menopause symptoms worse.
Not to mention, the older my skin gets, the more I want to protect it from further damage. Finding a safe sunscreen that works + that I actually enjoy applying? That is a win-win-win!
If you need help finding a safer sunscreen, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’m happy to point you toward some good brands + options.
The Environmental Working Group puts out a comprehensive sunscreen guide each year. It’s a great way to see how your sunscreen rates + to find safer alternatives.
I work with a brand that makes some incredible sunscreens. They not only work incredibly well, they are made with the highest safety standards + are EWG Verified. You can check them out here. If you order one of these, I get a small commission which helps support my work + writing.
Get 20% off your first order (promo code CLEANFORALL20). 60 days full refund policy. You also get a free gift with purchase this weekend for Memorial Day (Ends 5/29/23). Great time to try them out!
YOUR MISSION:
This week, I challenge you to read your sunscreen ingredient list so you can be confident you’ve got yourself covered this summer - in a safe way. If you’ve got questions about your sunscreen, reach out to me or leave a comment to discuss.
RESOURCES:
READ: The Trouble with Ingredients in Sunscreen | Environmental Working Group
IN SUMMARY:
Enjoy your Memorial Day weekend! I hope some sun finds its way to you. And, I hope you get yourself stocked up on some safer sunscreen! I’ll be around all weekend if you need some input or help.
Next week, I am kicking off my summer wellness series. If you’re looking to improve your hormonal health - you won’t want to miss it!
See you next week?
Meanwhile - you can read thru the archives here. And, please reach out to me anytime!
Email: karen@itmaybemenopause.com
Instagram: @itmaybemenopause