It's the dog days of summer here in South Louisiana and anyone who has been here for longer than a day knows the heat is sweltering and the sun is brutal (when its not monsooning, of course). The sun is actually good for our skin, but if you have to be out longer than an hour or have fair skin, like my family does, you know you need some sort of protection whether thats UPF clothing or sunscreen. And what's better than tallow sun balm? Here's the low down on conventional sunscreens.
Chemical sunscreens contain cancer-causing ingredients that absorb into your skin and actually absorb UV rays to "protect you" from the sun. There are 12 chemicals total used in most chemical sunscreens, and they can stay on your skin and in the bloodstream for weeks after the last use!
What's even more terrifying is that none of these chemicals are approved for ingestion or inhalation...think closing your eyes and spraying it into your face... Furthermore, researchers found that adolescent boys with higher oxybenzone measurements had lower testosterone levels. There is evidence of adverse reproductive outcomes, increased risk of breast cancer and endometriosis, and increases in thyroid tumors.*
This absorption actually can cause mutations that increase the risk of skin cancer. Three of these ingredients, namely homosalate, avobenzone, and oxybenzone have endocrine disrupting effects. The European Commission published final opinions on these in 2021 citing that two of the twelve used (homosalate and octocrylene) are not actually safe at the current usage found in most sunscreens.
Mineral sunscreens, however, sit atop your skin and reflect the UV rays. The two minerals used are titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. Both are regarded as "GRASE" or generally recognized as safe and effective. Evidence suggests that few, if any, zinc or titanium particles penetrate the skin. Yes, some leave a white sheen, but I'd rather look like a ghost than deal with the adverse risks associated with chemical sunscreens.
Our Tallow Sun Balm contains grass fed tallow from locally raised cows, lard from our pastured pigs, non-nano zinc oxide, beeswax, organic cocoa butter and essential oils. Tallow alone has an SPF of 4, and the 13% zinc oxide brings that up to around 25 (zinc oxide has average efficiency of 1.5-2.5 SPF units/1% active).
Side note: SPF or Sun Protection Factor is the amount of time that the active ingredients will protect from UV rays before reapplication is needed...so if you normally start to burn after 15 minutes unprotected and you have an SPF of 25, then you would be protected for 375 minutes or 6.25 hours. Of course, this doesn't factor in the strength of UV rays at any given point, so its recommended to reapply every 2 hours. Also, give your kids a quick math lesson with your sunscreen at home...
Want to make a quick sunscreen at home? Try this recipe...
1/2 cup tallow
1 Tablespoon coconut or olive oil
1 Tablespoon Zinc Oxide powder
1 teaspoon beeswax
a few drops of essential oil (Be sure to avoid anything citrus or any photosensitive oils)
Melt the oils and wax in a glass bowl on a double boiler (if using a microwave, melt in short bursts stirring in between). Once melted, let cool to room temp then whisk in your zinc oxide & essential oils. You can use a hand mixer to whip it up to an airy consistency before storing in a glass jar.
Don't feel like being crafty, not to worry, here's a link to buy ours.
*https://www.ewg.org/sunscreen/report/the-trouble-with-sunscreen-chemicals/