While European beach-goers will be slathering on the latest sunscreen products this summer, Americans must make do with what they've been using for the past 15 years. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not added any new sunscreen ingredients to its approved list since 1999, with at least eight ingredients pending approval since the early 2000s.
Meanwhile, newer and more effective sunscreen products offering broader protection have been available in Europe, Canada and Asia for years, according to the Washington Post.
"We're basically saying that the American people should make do with what was the most innovative science from 10 to 12 years ago," Wendy Selig, president of the Melanoma Research Alliance, recently told the Post.
"Ask someone if they want to buy automobile technology from 12 years ago, or computer technology from 12 years ago."
A group of health organizations, sunscreen ingredient companies and concerned citizens have formed the Public Access to Sunscreens (PASS) Coalition to lobby the FDA to speed up its sunscreen ingredient approval process.
The US treats sunscreen as an over-the-counter drug, a category of products that has to undergo heavy scrutiny by the FDA before approval. The EU considers sunscreen to be a cosmetics product, and can therefore approve new products more quickly.
The Sunscreen Innovation Act, a bipartisan bill recently introduced in the US Senate, would provide for an alternative process to review the safety and effectiveness of sunscreen ingredients.
The PASS Coalition supports the bill, saying it would alleviate the current backlog for approval of sunscreen ingredients and streamline the review process so the public can gain access to the most effective and innovative sunscreen products.
During the past three decades, skin cancer has become the most common form of cancer in the US. One in five Americans will develop skin cancer over the course of a lifetime, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation. Finding the right protection is key.
The FDA has approved 17 chemicals to be used in sunscreen products, while the European Union has approved 27, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Both ultraviolet B (UVB) and ultraviolet A (UVA) rays are associated with skin cancer.
UVB rays cause sunburns and were once thought to be the sole contributor to skin cancer.
UVA rays are known for their role in skin aging and wrinkling, but it has recently been discovered that UVA rays contribute to and may even initiate the development of skin cancers, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation.
According to Cancer Research UK, the incidence of skin cancer in the US is 14 cases per 100,000 people. In Europe those statistics are compiled on a country-by-country basis, so it's difficult to make a direct US-EU comparison.
However in 2012 the skin cancer incidence in the EU ranged from 7 cases per 100,000 people in Portugal up to 20 cases per 100,000 in Switzerland.
Dermatologists recommend "broad spectrum" sunscreens to protect against both UVA and UVB rays. Only three of the FDA-approved suncreen ingredients screen against UVA rays.
Dr Maryam Asgari, a Kaiser dermatologist, told the San Francisco Chronicle that she recommends physical UVA blockers rather than chemical ones.
Physical blockers like zinc oxide protect the skin by deflecting rays. They offer broader coverage but are not as resistant to water and sweat, and they leave an obvious white residue on the skin.
The main chemical UVA blockers available to Americans are avobenzone and oxybenzone, but avobenzone is known to degrade in sunlight and cause allergic reactions, and both chemicals have been associated with hormonal disruptions.
"We have concerns about the fact people put these [products] all over their bodies, multiple times a day for multiple days in a row," Sonya Lunder, a senior analyst with the Environmental Working Group, told the San Francisco Chronicle.
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