topic Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else? in Beauty

Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

Beccaboone2 — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 13:47:50 GMT

I read so much good information on these boards, and avidly followed discussions on chemical vs. physical sunscreens for awhile. A couple of months ago, I decided that a physical sunscreen was a good option, so I purchased the EltaMD Clear 46 after reading so many great reviews. For reference, my skin is very fair, sensitive but prone to break-outs, with mild rosacea. I am 49 and get compliments on my skin frequently.

Well, at first I loved the EltaMD, and I loved the fact it has a higher % of zinc than what I had been using. After about a month of use though, I started breaking out! It was bad, too, worse than I have experienced in years along with significant redness. The worse thing is, my skin was not really healing like it usually does with breakouts. During this time, I kept using the EltaMD. Finally it was like a light bulb went off over my head and I realized it was likely the EltaMD causing this. I must add during this time, I moved cross-country and started a new job, so I was under more stress (not to mention a different climate) than usual, but my skin has never really reacted to stress in such a manner.

Anyway, I stopped using the EltaMD, and began using my previous product, Cetaphil Oil Control Moisturizer with 30 SPF. Almost immediately my skin calmed down and started healing, and two weeks later is crystal clear, smooth, nice with no redness.

Has anyone had a reaction to a physical sunscreen similar to this, or am I really off in thinking it was the EltaMD? My skin has always been very sensitive to new products, and I typically don't experiment once I find something that I like and works and I don't react to. I just think a physical sunscreen in more desirable than a chemical version, but if I can't tolerate it I guess the chemical is better than none. Especially since I am so very fair and burn easily. Opinions, thoughts, etc.? Thanks. I feel like I get the best info from this board.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

MarieIG — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 14:20:06 GMT

Hi Becca,

It seems to me your skin is telling you loud and clear the Elta is not for you. No need to torture yourself there. Ditch it.

I looked up Elta (perhaps they changed their formula since the ingredient list I found) but in addition to the zinc - which they specifically noted in their advertisement, it also contained a chemical sunscreen. (I then looked up the chemical and found opinions that it increased free radical activity.) I am not a skin care guru, so anyone interested in this will have to do their own research.

You mention in your post that you had already used zinc (at a lower percentage) so I doubt it was the zinc which, in and of itself, caused the breakout.

That being said, your current product is "oil control". You may need something extra to keep your skin from breaking out. (Personally, my skin likes salicylic acid to keep my pores clear, but I don't have rosacea, and everyone's skin is different.)

Bottom line, since you already used zinc without a problem, and that was the only physical sunscreen in Elta, I don't think it was the physical sunscreen that caused the problem. There are a number of other ingredients in the Elta which could have caused the problem. If you do use zinc, you may however, need an additional ingredient to control oil, or to prevent pore congestion. What works for some, will not necessarily work for all.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

River Song — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 14:36:59 GMT

I don't think it was the zinc, either, but the chemical sunscreen ingredient.

My face always breaks out in a rash from chemical suncreens.

The other EltaMD sunscreen, EltaMD UV Physical Broad-spectrum SPF 41 does not contain any chemical sunscreens. It contains 9% zinc oxide and 7% titanium dioxide. I think this is the one that gets great reviews for a physical sunscreen.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

Zcat — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 14:38:50 GMT

EltaMD SPF 46 has physical and chemical sunscreens. EltaMD SPF 41 has physical sunscreen only.

I agree with the previous poster -- I think something else may have caused the reaction.

ETA - I see someone else posted the same info at the same time I did. Sorry for the repetitive info.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

HappyDaze — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 16:56:55 GMT

On 7/27/2014 Sweet Susie said:
I don't think it was the zinc, either, but the chemical sunscreen ingredient.

My face always breaks out in a rash from chemical suncreens.

The other EltaMD sunscreen, EltaMD UV Physical Broad-spectrum SPF 41 does not contain any chemical sunscreens. It contains 9% zinc oxide and 7% titanium dioxide. I think this is the one that gets great reviews for a physical sunscreen.

The other Elta that does NOT contain any chemical sunscreen is the Elta Pure SPF 47 which I prefer over the SPF 41 (which is tinted and the tint may not work with your fair skin).

OP I'd try again but this time try one with ONLY physical sunscreens. I cannot use chemical sunscreens even in small amounts, as they irritate my skin.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

BellaCarro — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 17:06:55 GMT

On 7/27/2014 Sweet Susie said:
I don't think it was the zinc, either, but the chemical sunscreen ingredient.

My face always breaks out in a rash from chemical suncreens.

The other EltaMD sunscreen, EltaMD UV Physical Broad-spectrum SPF 41 does not contain any chemical sunscreens. It contains 9% zinc oxide and 7% titanium dioxide. I think this is the one that gets great reviews for a physical sunscreen.

Yep, sounds like the culprit.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

Katharita — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 17:13:40 GMT

I use physical sunscreen daily with no problems (either MDSolarsciences from Sephora or SkinCeuticals from Endless Beauty Care).

Elta MD SPF 41 broke me out. I have very oily, acne-prone skin.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

BellaCarro — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 17:19:06 GMT

OP, you might try SPF from Paula's Choice. I really like the Resist. There are choices by skin type both chemical and physical. I always prefer physical. Chemical stings my skin and turns it red.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

cassiem — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 17:39:19 GMT

On 7/27/2014 Sweet Susie said:
I don't think it was the zinc, either, but the chemical sunscreen ingredient.

My face always breaks out in a rash from chemical suncreens.

The other EltaMD sunscreen, EltaMD UV Physical Broad-spectrum SPF 41 does not contain any chemical sunscreens. It contains 9% zinc oxide and 7% titanium dioxide. I think this is the one that gets great reviews for a physical sunscreen.

The cetaphil that she says she uses successfully contains only chemical sunscreen ingredients, so I don't think that's the culprit. Zinc oxide can be pore clogging for some people.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

Katluvr58 — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 17:48:11 GMT

Supergoop has a SPF35 CC that is tinted. I am very fair and I use the fair/light which is very nice. My skin has been really fussy lately and this has not caused any breakouts. Also the Suntegrity Natural Moisturizing Face Sunscreen and Primer SPF 30 for the face is also very gentle on my skin. Actually I have had retin-a burned skin and that one actually helped it heal very quickly. They both are physical sunscreens.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

RainyDayGal — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 17:49:13 GMT

I'm surprised it took over a month for your skin to break out. Mine will break out within 3 days if a product isn't right for me. But either way it's good that you stopped using it.

It's hard to say what the culprit was that made you break out. I would have problems with products that contained titanium dioxide for the longest time. Everytime I used one I would break out. Sometimes it's not a certain ingredient that is the problem, but the OTHER ingredients that it's combined with that is the problem.

Just pay attention to your skin.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

Beccaboone2 — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 18:48:25 GMT

On 7/27/2014 cassiem said:
On 7/27/2014 Sweet Susie said:
I don't think it was the zinc, either, but the chemical sunscreen ingredient.

My face <em>always</em> breaks out in a rash from chemical suncreens.

The other EltaMD sunscreen, EltaMD UV Physical Broad-spectrum SPF 41 does not contain any chemical sunscreens. It contains 9% zinc oxide and 7% titanium dioxide. I think this is the one that gets great reviews for a physical sunscreen.

The cetaphil that she says she uses successfully contains only chemical sunscreen ingredients, so I don't think that's the culprit. Zinc oxide can be pore clogging for some people.

This is kind of what I was wondering. Am I correct in understanding that chemical sunscreen penetrates the skin, while physical covers it as a barrier and doesn't penetrate (much)?? I was thinking the barrier aspect is what caused the issue.

The breakout was odd, too - it was all over and hard to clear up. While I do have skin that is prone to breakouts, if it happens it is almost always just one small blemish that will start to pop up, and I will use salicytic acid for a couple of days and it will disappear. Of course, not thinking it was the EltaMD, I kept using it until I realized that it may be the culprit. My skin responded positively within two days of when I stopped using it and went back to my Cetaphil. I was just wondering if anyone else has issues with the zinc (assuming it does form a barrier over the skin as I *think* it does). Now that my skin is clear and soft looking again, I am hesitant to use anything but my Cetaphil, chemical or not.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

HappyDaze — Sun, 27 Jul 2014 18:53:40 GMT

On 7/27/2014 Beccaboone2 said:
On 7/27/2014 cassiem said:
On 7/27/2014 Sweet Susie said:
I don't think it was the zinc, either, but the chemical sunscreen ingredient.

My face <em>always</em> breaks out in a rash from chemical suncreens.

The other EltaMD sunscreen, EltaMD UV Physical Broad-spectrum SPF 41 does not contain any chemical sunscreens. It contains 9% zinc oxide and 7% titanium dioxide. I think this is the one that gets great reviews for a physical sunscreen.

The cetaphil that she says she uses successfully contains only chemical sunscreen ingredients, so I don't think that's the culprit. Zinc oxide can be pore clogging for some people.

This is kind of what I was wondering. Am I correct in understanding that chemical sunscreen penetrates the skin, while physical covers it as a barrier and doesn't penetrate (much)?? I was thinking the barrier aspect is what caused the issue.

The breakout was odd, too - it was all over and hard to clear up. While I do have skin that is prone to breakouts, if it happens it is almost always just one small blemish that will start to pop up, and I will use salicytic acid for a couple of days and it will disappear. Of course, not thinking it was the EltaMD, I kept using it until I realized that it may be the culprit. My skin responded positively within two days of when I stopped using it and went back to my Cetaphil. I was just wondering if anyone else has issues with the zinc (assuming it does form a barrier over the skin as I *think* it does). Now that my skin is clear and soft looking again, I am hesitant to use anything but my Cetaphil, chemical or not.

you did see the posts where people pointed out that the sunscreen you chose DID contain chemical, correct? And so therefore you don't know if you skin can tolerate a physical ONLY sunscreen since you truly haven't tried one yet.

Anyway, to answer your other question about zinc- my skin often cannot tolerate high levels of zinc but a few months back I found a CC cream with 20% zinc that my skin can tolerate. First time I have had no irritation not even slight from that high of zinc. So like someone else mentioned, just as importantly than the levels of something or a physical vs chemical may be the other ingredients included with said ingredient as well.

I haven't had any issues with 9% zinc in products though which is in the one you tried- that is a pretty low amount and most don't have any reactions to that low amount of zinc. It is usually when they get up over 15% or more where people tend to have reactions.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

sun8shine — Mon, 28 Jul 2014 00:53:30 GMT

I don't have roseacea - I do have combination skin. I prefer mineral sunscreens. I would get irritated by Neutrogena and Aveeno sunscreens and I definitely got breakouts when I used them daily. This happened even with formulas that were for use on the face. I use Paula's Choice now without any issues and I used the bare minerals when they made it a few years ago.

It might be a matter of the formula of that particular product more than the mineral or chemical sunscreen?

But really I don't know everyone's skin is different.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

myshell624 — Mon, 28 Jul 2014 01:07:07 GMT

I haven't had any issue with physical sunscreen. My skin can't tolerate chemical ones.

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

bunnypink — Mon, 28 Jul 2014 01:11:16 GMT

I also think it was the chemical sunscreen ingredients. I have breakout prone skin & have to be sooo careful about every product that touches my face! Any spf that is chemical seems to break me out and/or burn. It's beyond frustrating!!

Re: Physical sunscreen use - has this happened to anyone else?

ItsME — Mon, 28 Jul 2014 15:43:27 GMT

It sounds like you had a reaction to the product. I've been using and loving EltaMD SPF 41 for several years, without problem. Even the tint is fine with me, although I have fair skin.

We are all different. Many years ago, I tried Neutrogena with Helioplex. I get a bad chemical burn from it. My whole face was a red mess, with welts all over. Took no time to get a reaction and a week or two to clear it up.