Redheads, there is good news. Better sunscreen is on its way!
President Obama signed the bipartisan Sunscreen Innovation Act into law on November 29th. The legislation is meant to clear the backlog of sunscreen ingredients pending U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) action.
Skin cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in the U.S., which is why members of Congress and the House Appropriations Committee have heavily criticized the FDA for taking so long to include better sunscreen ingredients, especially ingredients already widely used in Europe and Asia.
The last approval for widespread use of a sunscreen ingredient was in 1990. But since 2002, there have been eight ingredients submitted to the FDA that are still awaiting the agency’s review. Many of these ingredients on the list haven’t grabbed any press (even negative) in years, and many have shown significant improvements in protecting against UVA rays. The new law will force the FDA to make timely decisions on each of the pending ingredients within a specific timeframe. Some decisions are expected to be made within six months. New ingredients added since the law is enacted must be responded to within a year.
READ: 5 Step Sunscreen Guide for Redheads
READ: Redheads, How to Say Melanoma Free
Several of the pending ingredients provide better protection for UVA rays. Hopefully by this coming summer, sunscreens may be even more up to date. In the months to come, and with (hopeful) swift movement of the FDA, we might see skin cancer rates drop significantly.
For more ‘redhead friendly’ sunscreens we have approved and top SPF tips, read more here.
Rock it like a Redhead!
