Doubts over effectiveness of popular sunscreen brands
Isabella Higgins: Now, can we trust our sunscreen to protect us? Well, the latest testing by Consumer Group Choice has found many fail to meet their SPF claims. Twenty sunscreens were tested and only four met their advertised ratings. But the brands have rejected the findings. Rachel Carbonell reports.
Rachel Carbonell: It's considered essential to reducing Australians' high risk of skin cancer. But testing by Australia's peak consumer group has found many sunscreens don't meet their SPF label claims. Choice tested 20 sunscreens and CEO Ashley De Silva says they found 16 with a lower sun protection factor than advertised on their labels.
Isabella Higgins: We had things in their 20s, 30s and 40s when we were looking for 50 or more.
Rachel Carbonell: Choice tested the sunscreens in an accredited independent lab and many came back in the 20s, including Bondi Sands, Banana Boat and two Cancer Council products, which should have returned results of SPF 50 or above. The product that received the lowest SPF results was Ultraviolet Lean Screen Mattifying Zinc Sunscreen. Choice director of testing Matthew Steen says the results were double checked in an overseas lab. Just to see whether there was any problem and it came back with SPF 5, so almost identical. So we're sure that the results are legit. Ultraviolet says Choice has got it wrong and says it has since had the product retested and it returned a result of more than SPF 60. Some other brands also said they would pursue additional testing, including the Cancer Council. In a statement to the ABC, the Cancer Council said it was doing so out of an abundance of caution and it was critical that Australians have confidence in the sun protection factor of their sunscreen. The head of dermatology at the Melanoma Institute of Australia, Dr Linda Martin says while testing needed to improve to make sure labelling is accurate, adequate application of sunscreen was just as important.
Linda Martin: Most sunburns when they occur are occurring because people are not using enough sunscreen or because they're not using sunscreen at all.
Rachel Carbonell: Dr Martin says people can overestimate the difference between higher and lower sun protection factors.
Linda Martin: An SPF 30 will let through 3% of the sun's rays, whereas an SPF 50 will let through 2% of the sun's rays.
Rachel Carbonell: Choice now wants the Therapeutic Goods Administration, which regulates sunscreen, to test the 16 products. In a statement, the TGA said there was variability in SPF testing results across laboratories, largely because of the reliance on human subject testing. The TGA said it can check that companies were complying with safety regulations and direct them to investigate and retest if there were any potential issues with the product. But it said it is investigating the Choice findings and will take regulatory action as required. Choice said its results have also been submitted to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission so the watchdog could determine whether any of the brands made misleading claims about their sunscreens.
Isabella Higgins: Rachel Carbonell with that report.
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