In Brief

The Environmental Working Group releases its annual sunscreen report, noting that just a quarter of the products it reviewed offer good UV protection without safety concerns. More news in brief.

EWG’s 2013 Sunscreen Report

The U.S. market still lags behind Europe when it comes to safe and effective sunscreen products, according to the Environmental Working Group’s 2013 Sunscreen Guide rating more than 1,400 sunscreens, skin lotions, lip products and cosmetics that advertise sun protection. Summer 2013 is the first summer that manufacturers must be in compliance with an FDA rule implemented in June 2012 for sunscreen testing and labeling (Also see "In Brief" - HBW Insight, 10 Dec, 2012.). Under that rule, sunscreen products must feature an SPF 15 or higher and meet criteria for broad-spectrum protection to claim they reduce the risk of skin cancer or early skin aging caused by sun exposure. Despite these higher standards imposed on industry, just 25% of sunscreen products reviewed passed muster with EWG, which deducted points from products containing oxybenzone and/or retinyl palmitate, which have been linked to adverse health effects in studies, EWG says. Nearly half of all beach and sport sunscreens in the organization’s guide contained oxybenzone. EWG also takes issue with sunscreen sprays and products with high SPFs (above SPF 50), which pose safety concerns, it says. FDA released a proposed rule in June 2011 that would cap sunscreens at 50+, as well as an advanced notice of proposed rulemaking asking firms to submit safety and efficacy data for spray sunscreens, lest they be excluded from the final monograph .

COPPERTONE Schools Parents

Merck & Co., Inc.’s Consumer Care division and COPPERTONE brand launch a downloadable guide – “Making the Sunscreen Grade” – to get parents talking with their children’s schools about “mak[ing] sun protection and sunscreen reapplication a priority.” In a survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults, conducted by Merck and ORC International in March, 68% of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that sun-protection education should be incorporated into the school curriculum, and almost two-thirds were unaware that many U.S. schools have rules and restrictions around sunscreen usage. “School officials and parents recognize the importance of protecting children from the sun, but they may find policies and regulations tricky to navigate if they aren’t well-informed about them first,” says Ana M. Duarte, director of dermatology at Miami Children’s Hospital and a consultant for COPPERTONE. The brand’s guide is available through its website and is being distributed to a half-million households across 10 U.S. regions beginning May 1, it says.

CoverGirl Sponsors “The Hunger Games” Sequel

Procter & Gamble Co.’s CoverGirl brand aims to inspire consumers with a “fantasy-meets-reality beauty experience” through its exclusive sponsorship of the Lionsgate movie “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.” A key theme of the second movie in the trilogy is the “exquisite beauty and style” of the fictitious world’s Capitol, and by using only CoverGirl products to create the “luxurious, high-couture looks,” the firm hopes to “bring beauty transformation to life in an aspirational, dramatic fashion,” according to a May 17 release. CoverGirl also will launch new products in an upcoming Capitol Collection, details of which will be announced later. Partnering with a movie is a first for CoverGirl, which recently signed several new spokeswomen, including singers Janelle Monae, P!NK and NERVO (Also see "In Brief" - HBW Insight, 20 Aug, 2012.).