Baby/Toddler sunscreens

[janinegirly]

I am getting very confused by all the various sunscreens and press on what's best. There are the "natural" options that then have some other hidden chemical per the EWG website. Then there is the top rated sunscreens by the EWG, which turn out to be thick, pasty, and difficult to apply. Even worse, some moms are saying their child ends up sunburnt with these perfectly "rated" brands, so then one has to wonder which is worse - a burn or exposure to chemicals? So back we go to the more mainstream ones which are reasonably rated on EWG site, but then apparently have Parabans (Coppertone Pure and Simple).

So what is a confused mom supposed to do? What are you using? Right now I'm torn between California Baby, Babyganics and good ole Coppertone P&S.

Here is the EWG site by the way

http://breakingnews.ewg.org/2012sunscreen/

 

[Kunzite]

If we run out of sunblock this summer I plan to get Purple Prairie. It rates well on EWG and has good reviews for a natural product (easy to apply, etc).

http://safemama.com/cheatsheets/sunscreen/

Unfortunately I won't buy any more California Baby products. They did a reformulation at the end of last year that was very secretive and handled in a very dishonest and disrespectful way, so I don't have a lot of confidence in them as a company. We already had an unopened bottle of CB that we're using now and there have been a few days that O has come home a little pink so I'm not sure if it even works well. I might need to order the PP to replace it before it even runs out.

 

[Logan Sapphire]

If we run out of sunblock this summer I plan to get Purple Prairie. It rates well on EWG and has good reviews for a natural product (easy to apply, etc).

http://safemama.com/cheatsheets/sunscreen/

Unfortunately I won't buy any more California Baby products. They did a reformulation at the end of last year that was very secretive and handled in a very dishonest and disrespectful way, so I don't have a lot of confidence in them as a company. We already had an unopened bottle of CB that we're using now and there have been a few days that O has come home a little pink so I'm not sure if it even works well. I might need to order the PP to replace it before it even runs out.

We also don't buy CA Baby anymore for this same reason, though I will say that if you look at various items, many of them have sodium benzoate in them. It's kind of shocking how many things this ingredient is in! I know some argue that you have to have another ingredient in concert with the sb to become more carcinogenic.

Though, having said that...we might end up with their sunscreen again. Haven't had any problems with my kids burning with it. The reason we might be forced into it is that I need a sunscreen that does NOT have any nut oils in it, due to a child with severe nut allergies. We like Dolphin Organics' bath products but their new sunscreen has sweet almond oil in it. Badger has come highly recommended but I looked and shea oil is derived from the shea nut, so that's out. CA Baby fits our needs, sadly...

 

[Puppmom]

Same here on the CB products. Their reformulated diaper rash ointment burned my baby's buns!

We were having the same dilemma this year and ultimately ended up choosing Babyganics brand. If I recall correctly, it's rated a 2 on the EWG site. We have not had any issues. It's easy to apply - as easy as it can be when you're trying to chase a toddler around the house to slather it on. It's also worked really well. The playground at daycare has full sun in the am (and, when we're home, he wants to be outside all of the time) and no burns or *color* otherwise and last week it was well into the 90s here every day. The other brand I strongly considered was Think Baby. I ended up with the Babyganics because I didn't have to order it online.

 

[monarch64]

Love Mustela products; I am familiar with the product line after having sold it at a department store I worked for years ago. They make a great sunblock stick.

 

[LALove]

I use Badger brand. It comes in a tube and a stick. It's a bit thick in the tube but I don't mind- I use small amounts at a time and it takes maybe 1-2 extra minutes to rub in. Works great, IMO.

 

[pavelover]

Wow I feel I'll informed. What's wrong with mainstream sunblock? This all gets so overwhelming. I also struggle with applying mosquito repellent(I'm sure the chemicals must be worse) but dengue is rampant where we live...