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This is a (new)ish sunscreen by Bioderma, which honestly, I wouldn’t try if I hadn’t run out of my beloved Ultrasun SPF 50.
Look and feel of sunscreen
The product does smell of green tea which I completely forget about by the time I have finished blending the product. The label says its a “gel-cream.” Hmm. Its a cream.
Happy Skin Days Sunscreen test
In deciding whether or not to use a product I apply the following very basic sunscreen test
The product has no harmful chemicals (BHT, parabens, Oxybenzone or Formaldehyde releasing preservatives). It’s also an SPF 30, contains both UVA and UVB filters and I have no reason to reject this sunscreen.
The UV damage we are trying to protect against…
Both UVA and UVB have both been implicated in skin cancer and photo-aging and we want filters to protect against both types of damage.
We are looking for filters that absorb, reflect or scatter UVA and UVB radiation.
UV filters present are:
Abbreviations: Butylmethoxydibenzoylmethane (“Avobenzone”), Bis-Ethylhexyloxyphenol Methoxyphenyl Triazine (“BEMT”) and (“MBBT”)
- Octocrylene (3rd listed ingredient)
- MBBT (4th)
- Avobenzone (6th)
- BEMT (9th)
The list of filters is identical to Bioderma’s Photoderm AKN SPF 50 range, except the filters present in this product appear to be present in greater quantity. Secondly, the product has:
- Ascorbyl glucoside (a Vitamin C derivative) which is an excellent antioxidant (and therefore diminishes the ROS effect on cellular damage), and
- Ectoin which protects cells from UVA induced cellular damage (which would include photo-ageing)
The only true UVB filter present is Octocrylene and its supported by BEMT (a broadspectrum filter) that provides superior UVB protection as well.
The UVA protection comes from MBBT, Avobenzone and BEMT. Avobenzone is a gold standard UVA filter and ordinarily I’d be concerned about its photostability, but I am not in this formulation, for reasons you can ask me via email or leaving a comment.
Both BEMT and MBBT are new style filters and what you need to know is this: they are photostable, large in molecular size and provide stable superior protection against UVA radiation. Both are supporting Avobenzone in this formulation.
All in all, there is no reason to doubt this product provides excellent protection against UVA radiation.
Concluding remarks
I am not going to road-test the claims on the product’s label that “Skin condition improves after 28 days, marks are reduced and wrinkles are reduced.” as this is so vague.
For me, its an excellent sunscreen because it provides formidable protection against UVA radiation.
The added extras are this sunscreen is aesthetically pleasing: there is no white cast, and it blends in with relative ease, giving a semi-matte finish. Also, it has anti-oxidants (stabilised Vitamin C) and a UVA protector (Ectoin).
Personally, for me, this sunscreen is proving to be a good substitute for Ultrasun.
I bought this in a buy one, get one free offer (wohoo!). Retail price in the UK is £16.80 for 40ml.
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See also My Top 5 sunscreen recommendations
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