Benzene sunscreen recall list plus#

“Benzene is an organic compound known to be a carcinogen, which means it has been associated with the development of cancers,” explains Joshua Zeichner, M.D., director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.

Benzene sunscreen recall list plus#

Here’s what you need to know about benzene contamination in sunscreen, plus what you can do to stay safe (and shielded from the sun) this summer. “We are investigating the cause of this issue, which is limited to certain aerosol sunscreen products.”īut the report and the recall don’t mean you’re automatically exposing yourself to a carcinogen every time you lather up-or, worse yet, that you shouldn't wear SPF. “While benzene is not an ingredient in any of our sunscreen products, it was detected in some samples of the impacted aerosol sunscreen finished products,” Johnson & Johnson wrote in a July 14 press release following internal testing. Neutrogena’s UltraSheer Weightless Sunscreen Spray SPF 100, for example, contained the most benzene of the batches tested, with 6.26 ppm, or more than triple the FDA’s limit. Valisure petitioned the FDA for a recall of 40 affected batches of sunscreen, which includes all samples that had a benzene concentration of at least 0.1 ppm. Neutrogena, Sun Bum, CVS Health, and Fruit of the Earth were among the brands with the highest levels of the carcinogen, per the lab’s results.Īlthough these findings sound concerning, they don’t prove that every product from these brands are always chock-full of benzine: “There was significant variability from batch to batch, even within a single brand,” the report states. “Sprays, gels, and lotions with both chemical and mineral-based formulations contained benzene,” Valisure wrote. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) limit of 2 parts per million (ppm). Benzene was detected in 78 (over a quarter) of those batches-and 14 of them contained more than the U.S. In a report released May 24, Valisure, a lab and online pharmacy that regularly tests consumer products, explains it analyzed 294 batches of sunscreen and after-sun products from 69 brands. Now, Johnson & Johnson has voluntarily recalled five entire lines of Neutrogena and Aveeno spray sunscreens. Sunscreen is a crucial step in any skincare routine, but some brands might not be living up to their safety promises: In May, an independent lab announced it discovered potentially harmful levels of benzene, a known carcinogen, in several popular sun-care products. Does this mean your sunscreen is unsafe?.