Are spray sunscreens illegal? And other sunblock questions – Episode 175

Valerie George (0:00)

Hi, I'm Valerie, and you're listening to The Beauty Brains.

Hi, and welcome to The Beauty Brains, a show where real scientists answer your beauty questions and give you an insider's look at the beauty product industry. This is episode number 175 I'm your host, Valerie George, and on today's episode, it's a mega episode. We're gonna cover a new story we found interesting in the cosmetics industry, and then we'll answer your beauty questions about sunscreens. We'll cover, are sunscreen sprays even legal? What is the level of SPF we should use on our face every day?

Why hasn't the FDA approved the new sunscreen filters available in Europe and Asia, like Univul and Tenazorb? When can we expect those to be available in the US? And is there a device for at-home use that can show you if your SPF is applied appropriately? First, I'd like to say hi to the co-host of the show, Perry Romanowski. Hi, Perry.

Perry Romanowski (1:00)

Hello, Valerie. Hey, you know what? I was listening to NPR this morning, and I think I found a new name for me to go by on the show. Instead of calling me Perry, you can just start referring to me as Chunky Pickup.

Valerie George (1:13)

Chunky Pickup? Tell me more. Where's that from? That sounds awful.

Perry Romanowski (1:17)

I don't know. Actually, I made the mistake of making that joke to my wife this morning, and it just did not go over well.

It was...

Valerie George (1:25)

Not a good name. I don't recommend it. It's not you. It doesn't look like you.

Perry Romanowski (1:30)

It was from a story about Tesla, and they were talking about their electronic pickup cars, and the problem with the pickups was that they were called chunky pickups. So they haven't been much of a hit.

Valerie George (1:43)

Yeah, I can see that.

Well, I think on our show, our listeners are listening to two cosmetic chemists with the cleanest teeth in the world. I don't know if that's some sort of world record. Are you interested in looking in that?

Perry Romanowski (1:56)

No, but I think you're right, because...

Valerie George (1:58)

We both had dental appointments today. Yeah, I had a clean bill of health, no cavities. I think you can see how white my teeth are.

Perry Romanowski (2:06)

Indeed, indeed, and mine went well, too. Although I'm always a little suspicious of dentists, because somehow they always will find something. They're like, oh, that was fine last time, but this time, I think what they don't like, because they always go in there and they say, you should probably get those wisdom teeth taken out. I'm like, and I've had them for as long as I've had them, and they've been fine, and there's no cavities there. Just seems a little suspicious to me.

Valerie George (2:32)

Yeah, well, I actually have a dismissive dentist. I think you'd really like him. He actually prefers to do cleanings himself on me.

I think he just does it the day that I come in. I go in on a Tuesday usually, and he never finds anything, and he's always like, yeah, it's good. He's just so dismissive. He's like, yeah, you can get away with coming in once a year. He just seems like he doesn't want to do any work, which I think is great if it's really the truth and I have beautiful teeth, and sure, yeah.

Perry Romanowski (3:02)

Well, they look good, at least over the Google Hangouts that we're doing.

Valerie George (3:06)

Yeah, yeah. Anyway, let's talk Beauty Science News.

This is actually a hybrid beauty science news and listener question put together. While this article that we're gonna talk about today is nearly one years old, I think it's still relevant because we often get questions about coconut oil and hair and skin benefits. In 2017, Allure posted an article, Does Coconut Oil Dry Out Your Hair? It wanted to explore why some people feel the benefits of coconut oil on hair while others are left feeling with their hair like straw, like there's no benefit, and it actually makes the hair feel worse when they apply coconut oil. And since coconut oil is still all the rage, many swear by it in their beauty ritual, I thought we'd look at what it's actually doing on hair.

Perry Romanowski (3:56)

Yeah, good idea.

Valerie George (3:58)

Coconut oil is actually confusing in the name because when we think of oil, we think of a liquid that's insoluble in water, and you see these droplets floating on it. But coconut oil is not just a liquid, it's also a solid. So if it's a warm day or warm in your house above 72 degrees Fahrenheit, it's actually a liquid.