Mineral Sunscreen Questions

[papschmitty]

I'm pretty good about using sunscreen; I use an SPF 15 moisturizer on my face everday and SPF 15-30 on my body when out in the sun during the summer time. I wear mineral makeup but mostly just eyeshadow and masacara. I usually too lazy for foundation. I've been thinking about switching over to a more natural type of sunscreen. That is until I got a call back from my dermatologist yesterday. I had a couple suspicious moles removed last week and one of them is a melanoma. We found it very early so my prognosis is excellent but, especially given the fact that I just lost my mom to cancer 6 months ago, it has kind of thrown me for a loop. I'm planning to ask the doc about it when I return to have more tissue dug out in two weeks but I'd like to have a good foundation of knowledge before I go. So, my cruncy companions, teach me what you know about mineral sunscreen. If conventional is the way to go, are there any brands that are free of phalates and parabens? TIA!

[yelloq]

Moisturizer with SPF rarely provides adequate protection (unless it is something like LPR Hydraphase), especially because to get the full SPF you need to apply 1/4 tsp. to the face, which is far more than most people can reasonably use. I personally prefer Canadian and European sunscreens with Tinosorb and/or Mexoryl because they provide far better protection against UVA rays, so I'm not any help with the mineral sunscreens, but the same application amounts apply. The thing about mineral sunscreens is that they max out at a PPD (measure of UVA protection) of about 8 whereas chemical sunscreens can go up to a PPD of 30+.

I'm so sorry about your mom and I really hope everything turns out well for you.

[papschmitty]

Thanks for the reply. I know I'll be just fine; losing my mom is another story. Where do you get your sunscreens?

[yelloq]

I buy La Roche Posay at Shoppers here in Canada or order Bioderma and Avene from an American website called FrenchCosmeticsForLess. In the US there are a few with mexoryl available in drug stores - the La Roche Posay SX is supposed to be good. But these are all totally chemical, nothing natural about them