Sunscreen Ranker journal
The sunscreen
journal.
Daily, evidence-led notes on SPF, UV filters, and sun protection — every claim sourced, no cap.
- Seasonal The Altitude Rule: Why UV Hits Harder for Hikers and Skiers Every 1,000 meters you climb, UV intensity rises about 10% — which is why a sunny summit can scorch you faster than the beach. Read it →
- Global Bemotrizinol: The First New US Sunscreen Filter in 20+ Years A broad-spectrum filter Europe and Asia have used for decades is finally cleared for the US — here's what bemotrizinol does and why it took so long. Read it →
- Trends Most TikTok SPF Advice Is Right — But the Wrong Videos Go Viral A study of 971 top sunscreen videos found anti-sunscreen content was rare — but it punched far above its weight in engagement. Read it →
- Application SPF 30 vs SPF 50: The 20-Point Jump Is Only ~1% More That leap from SPF 30 to SPF 50 sounds huge — but in actual UVB blocked, it's about one percentage point. Read it →
- Reef-safe 84% of Reefs Hit: The Fourth Global Bleaching Event Ends The worst coral bleaching event on record touched 84% of the world's reefs — and it puts the small, avoidable harm from sunscreen chemicals in sharp context. Read it →
- Skin cancer Tanning Beds Before 35 Raise Melanoma Risk 75% — Here's Why Indoor tanning is marketed as a controlled, safer glow — but the WHO files it in the same top carcinogen category as tobacco. Read it →
- Trends Anessa x Pokémon: How Japan Makes Daily SPF Collectible Shiseido wrapped Japan's No. 1 sunscreen in Pikachu packaging — and it's a smart lesson in how character collabs turn daily SPF into a habit. Read it →
- Formulation Homosalate & Octisalate: The Quiet Workhorses in Your SPF They barely block UV on their own, yet homosalate and octisalate show up in almost every chemical sunscreen — here's the clever chemistry reason why. Read it →
- UV science 95% of the UV Hitting You Is UVA — The Aging Ray You Forget UVB gets the sunburn headlines, but the UV that reaches you all day is overwhelmingly UVA — the wavelength that quietly drives photoaging. Read it →
- Makeup + SPF Your SPF Moisturizer Is Missing Your Eyelids, a Study Shows UV imaging caught what your mirror can't: SPF moisturizers leave a surprising amount of your eyelid area — a high-risk skin cancer zone — unprotected. Read it →
- Sensitive skin No, the Sun Won't Clear Your Acne — Here's Why It Backfires Tanning a breakout away feels like it works for a day or two, but dermatologists say it damages your skin and can make acne worse. Read it →
- Skin cancer AACR 2025: How Aging Skin Reshapes Melanoma Risk New research presented at AACR 2025 helps explain why melanoma behaves more aggressively as we age — and why lifelong sun protection matters at every stage. Read it →
- Global Australia's 2025 Sunscreen Review Echoes the EU on Old Filters It's not just Europe — in 2025 Australia put the same legacy chemical filters under the microscope, and the verdicts are converging. Read it →
- Formulation Oral Photoprotection Works (a Little): 24% Higher Sunburn Threshold in 8 Weeks 'Edible SPF' is everywhere online — a 2025 trial shows a real but modest effect, and why it never replaces the bottle. Read it →
- Application e.l.f. Suntouchable Invisi-Stick SPF 50: The Clear Reapply-Anywhere Stick Stick sunscreens fix the #1 reason people skip reapplication — and e.l.f.'s clear SPF 50 makes the format affordable. Read it →
- Seasonal Why Snow Is a Sunburn Trap: Skiers Get Hit by UV Twice Cold doesn't mean safe — fresh snow can nearly double your UV exposure on the slopes. Read it →
- Global Drug vs. Cosmetic: Why US Sunscreen Rules Differ From Korea and Europe The reason foreign sunscreens can't just appear on US shelves comes down to one word: drug. Read it →
- Global Why Americans Are Panic-Hoarding Korean Sunscreen in 2025 Those 'buy it before it's gone' posts about Korean SPF aren't pure hype — here's what FDA rules really mean for the formula you love. Read it →
- Makeup + SPF Merit's The Uniform SPF 45 Expands to 20 Shades in 2025 Pigment-dispersion tech is letting zinc oxide work across deeper skin — and Merit's 2025 shade jump shows where tinted mineral SPF is headed. Read it →
- Makeup + SPF MERIT 'The Uniform' Tinted Mineral SPF 45 Hits 20 Shades (April 2025) Shade range has long been the weak spot for tinted mineral SPF — MERIT's April 2025 expansion to 20 shades takes aim at exactly that. Read it →
- Trends 'Sunscreen Contouring': The TikTok Hack Dermatologists Beg You to Skip The 'sunscreen contouring' hack sculpts your face by letting it burn — and that's exactly why dermatologists want it gone. Read it →
- Application Does Sunscreen Expire? What a 'No Date' Bottle Means Can you use last summer's bottle? The FDA's actual rule settles it — and a hot car changes the answer. Read it →
- Skin cancer One Blistering Childhood Sunburn Doubles Melanoma Risk A single blistering sunburn in childhood echoes for decades — and the numbers explain why sun habits have to start young. Read it →
- Formulation PA++++ vs. 'Broad Spectrum': How to Read UVA Protection That PA++++ on your Japanese sunscreen tells you something the US 'broad spectrum' label can't — here's how to decode both. Read it →