Your dermatologist suggests it. The different health magazines say it. Your friend vouches to its effectiveness. Indeed, it has become a golden rule that if you want to take care of your skin and prevent the early signs of aging or worse skin cancer, you need to put on sunscreen.
The good news is that there are already so many brands to choose from, with sun protection factor of up to 70 or even much higher than that. The bad news is that not all of them are actually truthful.
In one of the recent articles published by Consumer Reports, a good number of sunscreen brands don't contain the same SPF as listed in the bottle.
The team tested 34 of the most popular brands in the market with varying ingredients, SPF, makers, and prices. They then applied the lotions and creams to the back of their volunteers who, after being lathered up, submerged themselves in the water to test the resistance of the cream over a period of time. They then exposed the lathered-up body part to UV light.
It was then they discovered that about 33% of these brands weren't exactly accurate when listing their SPF level. Some of these brands such as ClearlySheer and UltraGuard for Coppertone registered lower SPF than what was printed in the bottle. However, they were beyond the minimum needed SPF of 30, which means they can offer protection up to 97%.
However, there were also brands that performed poorly. For example, Yes to Cucumbers (Natural) posted SPF 30 in their package, but when tested, the level was only 14, more than half than what is required.
Speaking with NJ Advance Media who also ran the story, the representatives of the manufacturer of Yes to Cucumbers stand by the claims of the bottle. They said that their products have been thoroughly and independently tested and have been found out to be accurate to their promise. Moreover, they have followed the guidelines of the Food and Drug Administration in relation to determining UV-A or sunscreen protection.
