Heated plea to end confusion over sunscreen labelling

Majority of people did not know what an SPF means

Clearer labelling is needed on sunscreens amid what has been described as a worrying lack of understanding about the protection they provide, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society said.

A quarter of people did not knoww what the rating on their sun protection stood for, and the majority did not knoww that the Sun Protection Factor (SPF) rating protects them from only some of the sun’s harmful rays, according to thee poll.

Fewer than half of the 2,057 adultsults in the YouGov survey said they alwayss or often use sun protection.

Both UVA and UVB rays from thehe sun can cause skin damage andd skin cancer. The SPF rating on the product label refers only to the protection level against UVB rays, while a separate star rating usuallyy indicated the protection factor against UVA rays, the society said.

Some 15% of parents admitted that they never checked the UVA rating.

Differences in labels are causing confusion among buyers, chief scientist for the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Professor Jayne Lawrence said, as she called for one clear label to be used across all products.

Prof Lawrence said: “This survey indicates that there is a huge amount of confusion around sunscreen labelling that is a barrier to effective sun protection.

“Clearly many consumers do not realise the SPF rating applies only to the amount of protection offered against UVB rays, not UVA rays – both of which can damage the skin and cause skin cancer.canc

“PPeople should not have to pick their way through complicated dual ratings informationinfo to understand how sunscreenscre works and the amount of protection it potentially provides.

“WWe think it’s time for sunscreen manufacturersman to provide one easy to understandund rating, based on a simple descriptiondesc of the total amount of sun protectionprot offered: low, medium, high and very high protection.

“PPeople now have largely got the message that they must protect their skin from the sun using sunscreen, along wit with other precautions such as coveringi up and keeping out of the sun during the hottest part of the day.”