Blue Lizard sunscreen
Easily spotted because of the funky blue lizard on the label, Blue Lizard sunscreen products are manufactured and sold globally. It has grown from its inception to combat what they believe to be one of the most intense UV environments in the world in Australia. Tested according to Australian Standards, Blue Lizard sunscreen acquired extreme water resistance after 240 minutes in whirlpool water. Today Blue Lizard is a division of Crown Laboratories, a pharmaceutical company located in the United States. In comparison, the US's FDA (Food and drug Administration) requires testing for 80 minutes in still water only.
Micronised Zinc Oxide
Blue Lizard sunscreen uses micronized zinc oxide as their core sunscreen ingredient, which is an ingredient that has been shown to be much safer to humans on the skin than other chemical sunscreen ingredients. It also provides excellent protection against both UVA and UVB rays.
Products
Blue Lizard sunscreens have expanded their labels over the years to now include:
SPF30:
Uses a combination of the following active sunscreen ingredients:
- Octinoxate 7.5%, also known as Octyl Methoxycinnamate and known to have estrogenic or gender-bending effects
- Octocrylene 2 %, produces free radicals when exposed to sunlight; damaging the DNA and possibly causing cancer
- Oxybenzone 3 %, also known as Benzophenone-3, it is associated with photo allergic reactions and hormone disrupting activities and absorbs quickly through the skin
- Zinc Oxide 6%. A mineral sunscreen where the above 3 are all chemical, it provides high protection from both UVA and UVB rays and has excellent healing qualities
Sport:
A very similar sunscreen formula to the above, with the exact same active ingredients in the same proportions, but with some different non-active ingredients. Both the above labels have high water resistance, where they claim to retain the SPF after 240 hours (4 hours) activity in water.
What I find a little misleading is that the same label that claims high water resistance then instructs us to "keep out of eyes" and if not, then to "rinse with water to remove".
Sensitive:
This type of product attracts those with sensitive skin types or problematic skin such as those with acne or eczema. Although the chemical sunscreens used in the above labels are absent, which are in themselves often the cause of reactions from sensitive skins, they use 3 ingredients that I would have preferred to have been absent:
- Propylene Glycol as this can cause dermatitis, kidney or liver abnormalities, skin growth prevention, or just plain irritation
- PEG-7 (Polyethylene Glycol) all contain dioxane, which is carcinogenic and extremely toxic for man
- Parabens - known to be endocrine disruptors mimicking estrogen, upsetting the hormone balance, and potentially causing reproductive cancers in both men and women
Face:
Using slightly more Zinc Oxide at 8%, they unfortunately use 5.5% Octinoxate, which of course, I would far rather wasn't included at all, as well as the PEG and Parabens.
Baby:
So then we get to the Baby sunscreen and this is where I really want to see none of the potentially harmful chemicals used at all. However, although this is claimed to be "chemical free" by using a combination of Zinc Oxide 10% and Titanium Dioxide 5%, it does contain the same chemicals noted above that I wouldn't want adults to use, never mind children or babies! They include:
- Propylene Glycol
- PEG-7 Hydrogenated Caster Oil
- Parabens all of the Methyl-, Propyl- and Ethyl-parabens
Chemical and fragrance free?
It must be noted that although they claim to be "chemical free" on some of their sunscreens, this only refers to the active ingredients being chemical free. Ie. They only use mineral sunscreens instead of chemical sunscreens, instead of the combination of the 2 types as they do in their other brands.
They also claim to be "fragrance free", which refers to their having no added fragrance. This means that the fragrance, or smell, of the sunscreen will therefore be a natural refection of the sunscreen's ingredients.
Smart Bottle™
Blue Lizard sunscreens all use their trade-mark: Smart Bottle™, which uses a trade marked technology to turn their white plastic bottle to blue as soon as you take it outside into the sun's UV light. This is a first-rate indicator, and reminder, for you to put on the sunscreen before it's too late. The Baby sunscreen label turns pink a very nice quirky touch!
