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Technology


YOU’RE NOT ALLOWED TO HAVE THE BEST SUNSCREENS IN THE WORLD

Newer, better UV-blocking agents have been in use in other countries for years.
Why can’t we have them here?

By Amanda Mull

Chris Maggio
July 1, 2022
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At 36, I am just old enough to remember when sunscreen wasn’t a big deal. My
mom, despite being among the palest people alive, does not remember bringing it
on our earliest vacations, or hearing any mention of sun protection by our
pediatrician. The first memories I have of sunscreen are from the day camp that
my brother and I attended in the 1990s, where we spent every day on a playground
in the direct Georgia sun but were prompted to slather it on only once every two
weeks, when we were bused to a community pool. On those days, mom dropped an
ancient bottle of Coppertone, expiration date unknown, into my backpack, where I
usually left it. In 2000, I started high school, just in time for the golden age
of the tanning bed.




The preponderance of babies in rashguards and bucket hats that you now see at
the beach shows how much has changed, and how quickly. Skyrocketing skin-cancer
rates, specifically for fair-skinned people, among whom the disease is more
prevalent, have scared plenty of people into rethinking their tans, as has the
realization that sun exposure causes—horror of horrors—wrinkles and other
visible signs of aging. Now SPF is ubiquitous. You can find it in lotions,
sprays, gels, oils, powders, and implements that look like grade-school glue
sticks, as well as infused into skin-care products, lip balms, makeup, and
clothing. Sun care has its own aisle at big-box stores, and beauty companies
worth hundreds of millions of dollars have been built from the ground up by
offering only products that block ultraviolet rays.

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