Much worse, if for no other reason than applying it and having it leave behind a white residue on your skin makes people much less likely to reapply once it rubs off.

I always pack my own sunscreen when traveling to islands that ban normal sunscreen. I feel bad if it actually damages the reefs, but reef safe sunscreen is terrible at protecting from the sun.

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NegativeK 4 days ago | parent | next [-]

That's not okay. If reef safe sunscreen isn't sufficient for what you need, then you should find a different way to protect yourself than one that damages reefs.

	▲	cj 4 days ago \| parent \| next [-]
		It’s okay. I’m not actually spending time in the ocean. More of a “sit by the pool and explore the island” kind of guy!
	▲	loeg 4 days ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		The sunscreen x reef safety research isn't very good, and the marketing is well out in front of the science on this issue.

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loeg 4 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Reef-safe sunscreen is bullshit anyway. The marketing is well out in front of the science. There's no real evidence it's harmful to reefs and there's no real evidence (or reason to believe) the other kinds of sunscreen aren't just as harmful to reefs. It's just marketing jibber jabber.

https://www.consumerreports.org/health/sunscreens/the-truth-...