FDA bans ‘waterproof’ label on sunscreens
May 21, 2013, 8:05 AM
PHOENIX — Just in time for the first unofficial summer holiday weekend, the Federal Drug Administration has issued new requirements to help make sun-protection products more effective and less misleading.
The FDA has banned terms like ‘waterproof’ on sunscreen labels and Valley dermatologist James Pehoushek said there never has been a truly waterproof sunscreen.
“We always tell our patients to reapply sunscreen every two hours. This is especially true in the case of children playing in the pool. A lot of people think the water actually protects them from the sun when in truth the water magnifies sunrays,” Pehoushek said.
Pehoushek said make sure any sunblock has an SPF rating of 50 plus and is labeled ‘broad spectrum.’ That will block about 97 percent of the sun’s rays.
Arizona ranks high in the number of skin-cancer cases. According to the American Cancer Society, about 1,400 new cases of melanoma will occur in the state this year.
