How you can do your part to help save our oceans
About a year ago, I was listening to a podcast when the host mentioned that she never goes on vacation without her reef safe sunscreen. She didn’t elaborate on it or really speak about what it was, but my interest was piqued…
Reef safe? What does that even mean? How would sunscreen have any impact on reefs, especially when I barely go into the ocean anyway?
I quickly entered a Google wormhole and emerged hours later enlightened, concerned, and empowered.
Chemical-based sunscreens, the kind that the majority of us use, greatly contribute to coral bleaching and are harmful to many other marine animals.
What is “coral bleaching”?
Coral bleaching is when coral basically forces out all of the algae that lives inside it. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the coral dies, but without the algae it is exponentially harder for the coral to continue to grow. Because of this, coral bleaching causes tons of coral larvae to die.
How does sunscreen cause coral bleaching?
The most common chemical-based sunscreens contain incredibly harmful ingredients, one of the worst of which is oxybenzone. While effective at reducing the effects of UV rays, it is one of the biggest offenders when it comes to coral bleaching. A single drop of oxybenzone watered down with the water from six Olympic-size swimming pools is enough to kill coral larvae. That’s absolutely insane!
So if one single drop of that in such a large amount of water is enough to cause coral bleaching…can you imagine the effect of millions of people getting into the ocean slathered in it every single day?
It is estimated that up to 14,000 tons of sunscreen enter our oceans every year…that’s 28,000,000 pounds! If the majority of that contains some of the most harmful ingredients then I’m not surprised at all the news stories I hear about our beautiful reefs dying! Legislators around the world are starting to take steps to ban chemical-based sunscreens. The following places have already banned chemical-based sunscreens, with more in the works:
- Hawaii, USA
- Key West, Florida, USA
- US Virgin Islands
- Palau
- Bonaire
Chemical-based sunscreens vs. reef safe, mineral-based sunscreens: The effect on humans
When you apply oxybenzone to your skin, your skin absorbs it and it often enters into your bloodstream. Because it absorbs into your skin, the UV rays it supposedly protects against are also absorbed…
Take a second to let that sink in: a chemical that kills coral reefs is being absorbed into your body…while also sucking in the UV rays you’ve only ever heard horrible things about…
Mineral-based sunscreens, which are made with either zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, stay on the top layer of your skin (instead of being absorbed) and work to reflect the UV rays you are trying to protect yourself from.
While to my knowledge there are no concrete studies that have been released showing the harmful effects of chemical-based sunscreens on humans, the FDA is currently doing testing to determine if some of these chemicals may increase the likelihood of developing certain types of cancer.
My favorite reef safe brands
I have two personal favorite brands of mineral-based sunscreens that I use regularly, and one brand that I don’t use but am mostly okay with recommending.
The brand that I truly consider to be the best mineral-based and reef safe sunscreen is Stream2Sea. Their containers appear to be comparable to any other squeezable sunscreen bottle…but there’s a catch…they are made from sugar cane resin! This means that they are biodegradable and not made from awful plastic! Stream2Sea also only makes their sunscreen from non-nano titanium dioxide because while there is no hard evidence yet that zinc oxide is less than ideal for us or our planet, they prefer to be safe than sorry and avoid using it.
All Stream2Sea products are tested by a third party and the company firmly believes in transparency. Their website is filled with all of their testing results and so many incredible resources to learn more about the harmful effects of sunscreen on our oceans. If this post hasn’t already sold you on mineral-based sunscreens, I cannot urge you enough to check out all that their website has to offer in terms of education and resources.
Because I believe so strongly in their mission, I have partnered with Stream2Sea as an ambassador. You can use code jenniferzollo to save 10% off your order.
My second favorite company is MamaKuleana. This is an extremely small company, based on the island of Maui. I believe the company is run entirely by one woman, and all of their sunscreen is made by hand in small batches that are sold in small, biodegradable packages. The only reason why they are not my number one favorite (because you all know how much I love supporting small businesses) is that the sunscreen is only sold in one type of container that is cardboard-like and it doesn’t always hold up the best when I travel (it also is not a convenient squeeze container like Stream2Sea). However, if you go to the beach often then I would highly suggest keeping it as a regular staple in your home.
The third brand that I am mostly okay with recommending is Sun Bum. Most of Sun Bum’s products are reef safe, but I am not 100% sure that they all are. They released a statement in response to Hawaii’s decision to ban chemical-based sunscreens back in 2018 basically saying that the majority of the products available in the US are reef safe and they are working to make all of them that way (though I’m not sure what that means about their products available in other parts of the world…). You can read the statement here. Sun Bum is more readily available in stores than the other brands I mentioned so the convenience mixed with their cute logo makes them a company people reach for often (just make sure you are checking the ingredients list before buying).
If you would like to know more about all of the common ingredients found in sunscreens that are harmful to coral reefs, Stream2Sea has a very comprehensive list available or I am happy to send you a card that contains all of them (we are given a massive stack of these to hand out as ambassadors). Click here to send me an email and I’d be happy to send one out to you!
How to use mineral-based sunscreen
It is important to note that mineral-based sunscreen does not go on the same way that chemical-based sunscreen does! A very small amount goes a long way and it will usually leave a slight white sheen on your skin.
Stream2Sea recommends using a pea-sized amount and applying it to individual areas at a time. They also recommend applying it in front of a mirror your first couple times so you don’t walk out of the house looking like a ghost. They have a great video tutorial located here.
If you’re not a fan of the white sheen, I personally love Stream2Sea’s tinted sunscreen. If you’re brand new to mineral-based sunscreens I would recommend trying out one of their kits first. This one includes both the regular sunscreen and the tinted one so you can give both a try and decide which one you like best.
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Cat says
Fantastic blog! Thank you for your support (from all of us at Stream2Sea) and for your dedication in spreading awareness! -Cat Miller
JZollo says
Thanks so much, Cat!!! Always happy to share about one of my favorite products 🙂