# Natural Sun Care

> A field guide to the mineral and natural sun care category, examined on its chemistry and on the claims it makes for itself. Published by Northbank Media.

## Rules this publication works to

- No cosmetic brand and no product is named anywhere on this site, in any context.
- No sun protection factor is attributed to any plant oil, including for the purpose of refuting one.
- No rankings, no product recommendations, no affiliate links, no advertising.
- No money is taken from sunscreen or skincare companies at any price.
- Every claim examined carries a status word from a fixed published vocabulary that contains no numbers.
- Clinical questions are handed to the NHS, a GP, a pharmacist or a dermatologist.

## The status vocabulary

- **Established**: Supported by regulation, by a standard, or by published evidence that we can point to.
- **Qualified**: Holds, but only under conditions that the claim as stated leaves out.
- **Unresolved**: A real question with incomplete evidence. Neither supported nor refuted at present.
- **Unsupported**: We have located no published evidence that would support it. That is not the same as refuted.
- **Misattributed**: Describes something real, but assigns it to the wrong cause or the wrong mechanism.
- **Contradicted**: Published evidence or regulation points the other way.

Full definitions: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/claim-status

## Sections

### The permitted filters: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters
What an ultraviolet filter is, which ones may lawfully be used in Great Britain, how the mineral and organic division works, and why the word chemical does no useful work as a sorting term.

- [Which UV filters are permitted in the UK, and how that list works](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/uv-filters-permitted-in-the-uk): In Great Britain a sunscreen is a cosmetic product, not a medicine. Its ultraviolet filters may only be substances listed in the annex of permitted UV filters that forms part of the assimilated Cosmetic Product
- [Mineral and organic UV filters: the difference that is real, and the one that is not](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/mineral-and-organic-uv-filters): The real difference is structural. Mineral filters are inorganic metal oxide particles that stay suspended in the product and sit on the skin as a particulate film. Organic filters are carbon based molecules di
- [Why chemical sunscreen is a category that describes nothing](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/why-chemical-sunscreen-is-a-meaningless-category): Chemical sunscreen has become the standard name for products using organic UV filters, and as a sorting term it fails on its own terms: zinc oxide is a chemical, titanium dioxide is a chemical, water is a chemi
- [How a UV filter actually works, in both classes](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/how-uv-filters-work): All permitted UV filters work by taking energy out of ultraviolet radiation before it reaches living skin. Organic filters do it by absorption: a photon promotes an electron to a higher energy state, and the mo
- [Ultraviolet A, ultraviolet B and what broad spectrum means on a UK pack](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/uva-uvb-and-broad-spectrum-in-the-uk): Sun protection factor is a measure driven mainly by ultraviolet B, because it is defined by the delay in visible reddening of skin and reddening is mostly a UVB effect. Ultraviolet A protection is measured and 
- [Photostability, and why a formulator never uses one filter alone](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/photostability-and-why-filters-are-combined): A UV filter absorbs energy, and the energy has to be released without destroying the molecule. Some organic filters do this well and some do not, which is why photolabile filters are always paired with stabilis

### Zinc and titanium: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral
What zinc oxide and titanium dioxide actually do, why the absorb against reflect story is a simplification, what particle size changes, what the nano labelling rule requires, and why white cast is physics rather than a formulation failure.

- [What zinc oxide actually does in a sunscreen](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/what-zinc-oxide-does): Zinc oxide is a crystalline inorganic semiconductor. In a sunscreen it absorbs ultraviolet radiation with enough energy to promote an electron across its band gap, which places its absorption edge near the boun
- [What titanium dioxide actually does in a sunscreen](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/what-titanium-dioxide-does): Titanium dioxide is a semiconducting metal oxide with a very high refractive index, which is why it is the standard white pigment in paint and why it whitens skin so effectively. As a UV filter it absorbs stron
- [Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide, compared on what actually differs](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/zinc-oxide-and-titanium-dioxide-compared): Zinc oxide absorbs further into the long ultraviolet A and has a lower refractive index, so it gives more even broad spectrum coverage and whitens less at a comparable particle size. Titanium dioxide absorbs mo
- [Absorb against reflect: the simplification taught to every shopper](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/absorb-versus-reflect): The standard explanation says that mineral filters sit on the surface and reflect ultraviolet like a mirror, while organic filters are absorbed into skin and convert ultraviolet into heat. Neither half holds. M
- [Particle size: the variable that decides how a mineral sunscreen looks and works](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/particle-size-in-mineral-sunscreen): Scattering of light by a particle depends steeply on the ratio of particle size to wavelength. Particles a few hundred nanometres across scatter visible light efficiently and look white. Reduce them to a few te
- [Nano and non nano: what the labelling rule actually requires](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/nano-and-non-nano-labelling): Cosmetics law defines a nanomaterial as an insoluble or biopersistent, intentionally manufactured material with one or more external dimensions in the range of roughly one to one hundred nanometres, and require
- [The nanoparticle safety questions, separated into the settled and the open](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/nanoparticle-safety-questions): Scientific committee assessments of nanoscale zinc oxide and titanium dioxide for dermal cosmetic use have consistently reported that penetration through healthy, intact skin is confined to the outermost dead l
- [The white cast problem, and why the physics makes it hard to solve](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/the-white-cast-problem): White cast is scattering of visible light by high refractive index particles. The materials that make good mineral filters are good filters because they interact strongly with light, and that interaction does n
- [Why mineral formulations are so much harder to make elegant](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/why-mineral-formulations-are-hard-to-make-elegant): A mineral sunscreen is a concentrated suspension of dense, high refractive index inorganic particles that must stay dispersed for two years in the tube and then spread into a continuous film in a few seconds on
- [Mineral sunscreen and darker skin tones: a formulation problem, not a preference](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/mineral-sunscreen-and-darker-skin-tones): White cast is a contrast effect. A layer of light scattering particles shifts apparent skin colour towards grey, and the shift is far more visible the deeper the skin tone, because the difference between the fi
- [The quantity problem: how a cosmetic complaint becomes a protection gap](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/the-quantity-problem-in-mineral-formulations): The sun protection factor on a pack is determined under a standard method at a specified application density. People routinely apply considerably less than that, and protection falls faster than the reduction i

### The word natural: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural
What natural means in cosmetics, which is much less than shoppers assume, what plant oils genuinely do, why the sun protection claims attached to them are the most dangerous thing in the category, and why a sunscreen cannot be made safely at home.

- [What natural means in cosmetics, which is much less than shoppers assume](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/what-natural-means-in-cosmetics): Natural has no definition in UK cosmetics law. No threshold exists, no regulator adjudicates it, and no product has to meet any criterion to use it. What fills the gap is a set of private standards and an inter
- [Plant oils presented as sun protection: the most dangerous claim in the category](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/plant-oils-presented-as-sun-protection): No plant oil is a permitted ultraviolet filter in Great Britain, none has been through the assessment that listing requires, and no published, reproducible determination of sun protection under the recognised i
- [Carrot seed oil, examined against what would be needed](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/carrot-seed-oil-examined): Carrot seed oil is the substance most often named when a plant oil is presented as sun protection, and the case for it does not hold. There are at least two different materials sold under similar names, one an 
- [Red raspberry seed oil, examined against what would be needed](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/red-raspberry-seed-oil-examined): Red raspberry seed oil is a cold pressed fixed oil with a high proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids and a notable tocopherol content. Those properties make it a good emollient and a reasonable antioxidant 
- [Coconut oil and sun exposure: the oldest version of the claim](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/coconut-oil-and-sun-exposure): Coconut oil is a saturated fat, dominated by lauric acid, which is chemically about as far from a good ultraviolet absorber as a common cosmetic oil gets. Strong ultraviolet absorbance generally requires conjug
- [Homemade sunscreen and why it cannot be made safely](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/homemade-sunscreen): A sunscreen protects in proportion to how evenly its filter is distributed through a thin film. Achieving that with a dense powder requires dispersion equipment, surface treated raw material and quality control
- [Natural and organic certification: what a mark actually certifies](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/natural-certification-what-it-certifies): Certification schemes in natural and organic cosmetics are private standards. Each publishes criteria covering which ingredients are permitted, which processing routes count as acceptable, what proportion of th
- [Essential oils, sunlight and the reaction nobody markets against](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/essential-oils-and-photosensitivity): Certain plant compounds, notably the furanocoumarins found in some citrus and umbellifer species, become reactive when they absorb ultraviolet and can produce phytophotodermatitis: a delayed burn like reaction,

### Reefs and the sea: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment
What the coral evidence establishes and what remains contested, where the regional bans came from, how marine and biodegradability claims fare against the Green Claims Code, and why the metal oxides are not environmentally inert.

- [Reef safe: what the phrase would have to mean, and what the coral evidence shows](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/reef-safe-and-the-coral-evidence): Reef safe is not a defined term. There is no standard, no test method, no threshold and no recognised certifying body, so a product using the phrase is asserting something that cannot be checked. Behind it sits
- [Where the regional sunscreen bans came from, and what they established](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/where-the-sunscreen-bans-came-from): A number of jurisdictions with coral reefs, including Hawaii and Palau, have prohibited the sale or distribution of sunscreens containing named ultraviolet filters, most commonly oxybenzone and octinoxate, with
- [Biodegradable, ocean friendly and the Green Claims Code](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/biodegradable-and-marine-claims): Environmental claims in UK advertising must be truthful and accurate, clear and unambiguous, must not omit important information, must make fair comparisons, must consider the full life cycle, and must be subst
- [Mineral filters and the environment, which is not the free pass it is presented as](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/mineral-filters-and-the-environment): The assumption that a mineral filter is environmentally neutral because it is a mineral does not hold. Zinc oxide is not inert in seawater: it dissolves slowly, releasing zinc species, and zinc is toxic to a ra
- [How an environmental claim is actually assessed when somebody complains](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/ocean-friendly-claims-and-the-advertising-codes): When an environmental claim is challenged, the question asked is what the ordinary reader would take it to mean, and whether the advertiser holds evidence supporting that meaning at the time the claim was made.

### Skin and health: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin
Whether mineral formulations are genuinely better tolerated, what the chemistry says about blocked pores, what the guidance is for children, why the vitamin D argument is answered by dietary guidance, and the umbrella safety claim taken apart.

- [Is mineral sunscreen genuinely better tolerated by sensitive skin?](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/is-mineral-better-for-sensitive-skin): There is a reasonable mechanistic argument: the metal oxides are not appreciably absorbed into living skin, they are not recognised as frequent contact allergens, and they have a long history of use in preparat
- [Mineral sunscreen and skin prone to blocked pores: what the chemistry suggests](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/mineral-sunscreen-and-acne-prone-skin): Whether a product blocks pores depends on its oils, waxes, film formers and how occlusive the finished film is, not on whether its filter is a metal oxide or a dissolved molecule. Metal oxide formulations tend 
- [Mineral sunscreen for babies and children: what the guidance says and where chemistry stops](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/mineral-sunscreen-for-babies-and-children): The reasons parents prefer mineral filters for children are reasonable: limited penetration of the metal oxides through intact skin, a long history of use, and a wish to be conservative about a body that is sti
- [Vitamin D and sunscreen: a nutrition and public health question, not a reason to stop protecting skin](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/vitamin-d-and-sunscreen): The United Kingdom's dietary guidance on vitamin D exists because sunlight at these latitudes cannot supply enough of it for a large part of the year, regardless of sunscreen. Public health advice therefore add
- [Is mineral sunscreen safer? The umbrella claim, taken apart](https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/is-mineral-sunscreen-safer): The claim rests on four supports. Limited dermal penetration of the metal oxides is well supported for healthy, intact skin. Low allergenic profile is reasonably supported. Molecular photostability is establish

## Claims examined

Every claim examined on this site, with its status: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/claims-examined

- "Mineral sunscreen is the only kind that is properly regulated" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/uv-filters-permitted-in-the-uk#claim-1)
- "Mineral filters are natural and chemical filters are synthetic" -- Misattributed (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/mineral-and-organic-uv-filters#claim-2)
- "This sunscreen is chemical free" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/why-chemical-sunscreen-is-a-meaningless-category#claim-3)
- "Mineral sunscreen sits on top of the skin and reflects UV like a mirror" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/how-uv-filters-work#claim-4)
- "Mineral sunscreens are naturally broad spectrum" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/uva-uvb-and-broad-spectrum-in-the-uk#claim-5)
- "Mineral sunscreen does not break down in the sun, so it lasts longer" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/filters/photostability-and-why-filters-are-combined#claim-6)
- "Zinc oxide is a physical barrier that sits on the skin and blocks the sun" -- Misattributed (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/what-zinc-oxide-does#claim-7)
- "Mineral filters are inert and do not react with anything" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/what-titanium-dioxide-does#claim-8)
- "Zinc oxide and titanium dioxide are essentially the same thing" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/zinc-oxide-and-titanium-dioxide-compared#claim-9)
- "Mineral filters reflect ultraviolet, chemical filters absorb it" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/absorb-versus-reflect#claim-10)
- "Non nano mineral sunscreen is safer because the particles cannot get into the body" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/particle-size-in-mineral-sunscreen#claim-11)
- "This sunscreen is non nano, so the particles are too large to enter the skin" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/nano-and-non-nano-labelling#claim-12)
- "Nanoparticles in sunscreen pass through your skin and into your bloodstream" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/nanoparticle-safety-questions#claim-13)
- "A good mineral sunscreen should leave no white cast at all" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/the-white-cast-problem#claim-14)
- "Mineral sunscreens are simpler formulations with fewer ingredients" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/why-mineral-formulations-are-hard-to-make-elegant#claim-15)
- "There is no mineral sunscreen that works on dark skin" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/mineral-sunscreen-and-darker-skin-tones#claim-16)
- "A high factor mineral sunscreen gives you more protection" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/mineral/the-quantity-problem-in-mineral-formulations#claim-17)
- "This product is one hundred per cent natural" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/what-natural-means-in-cosmetics#claim-18)
- "This plant oil has a natural sun protection factor" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/plant-oils-presented-as-sun-protection#claim-19)
- "Carrot seed oil is a natural sunscreen" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/carrot-seed-oil-examined#claim-20)
- "Red raspberry seed oil provides broad spectrum sun protection comparable to a mineral filter" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/red-raspberry-seed-oil-examined#claim-21)
- "Coconut oil has been used as sun protection for generations, so it works" -- Misattributed (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/coconut-oil-and-sun-exposure#claim-22)
- "You can make an effective sunscreen at home with zinc oxide" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/homemade-sunscreen#claim-23)
- "This product is certified natural, so it is better for you and for the planet" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/natural-certification-what-it-certifies#claim-24)
- "Essential oils are a gentler alternative to synthetic fragrance" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/natural/essential-oils-and-photosensitivity#claim-25)
- "This sunscreen is reef safe" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/reef-safe-and-the-coral-evidence#claim-26)
- "This filter is banned in Hawaii, so it damages coral reefs" -- Misattributed (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/where-the-sunscreen-bans-came-from#claim-27)
- "This sunscreen is biodegradable" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/biodegradable-and-marine-claims#claim-28)
- "Mineral filters are safe for the sea because they are natural minerals" -- Contradicted (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/mineral-filters-and-the-environment#claim-29)
- "Our sunscreen is ocean friendly" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/environment/ocean-friendly-claims-and-the-advertising-codes#claim-30)
- "Mineral sunscreen is better for sensitive skin" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/is-mineral-better-for-sensitive-skin#claim-31)
- "Mineral sunscreen is better for skin prone to breakouts" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/mineral-sunscreen-and-acne-prone-skin#claim-32)
- "Mineral sunscreen is the only safe option for children" -- Qualified (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/mineral-sunscreen-for-babies-and-children#claim-33)
- "Wearing sunscreen causes vitamin D deficiency" -- Unsupported (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/vitamin-d-and-sunscreen#claim-34)
- "Mineral sunscreen is safer" -- Unresolved (https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/skin/is-mineral-sunscreen-safer#claim-35)

## Reference

- About and funding model: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/about
- Editorial standards: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/editorial-standards
- What we refuse to sell: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/what-we-refuse-to-sell
- Professional register criteria and rates: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/register/criteria
- Newsletter and sponsorship rate card: https://naturalsuncare.co.uk/newsletter