Chances are, your first signs of aging actually came from the sun. In fact, most of your skin's damage happens before you're 18 years old, 90% of your skin's damage is sun-related, and 80% of your aging is from the damage caused by the sun or UV rays. Gee... thanks sun! 

You may be thinking... I wish I would have known that before I smothered myself in baby oil in the 90's and hopped into tanning beds in the 00's!

That being said, wearing a daily SPF is SO important to help prevent any more damage from occurring.  Please don't think "it's too late now!", because it really isn't.  The damage can become exponentially worse over time if not taken care of.

But did you know that some chemicals in traditional sunscreens can be super harmful to the skin & body? Don't worry, we've got your solution - but learning about sunscreen is important to make sure you're choosing the right things that are going to HELP you.  In this post we're going to help educate you on some of those harmful ingredients in traditional chemical based sunscreens & share some more information on our all natural options! Let's get down to business! 

Let's start by highlighting three common ingredients that are found in chemical sunscreens. These ingredients are all FDA approved, but since they are chemicals, they are ranked on a toxicity level. The scale for toxicity is from 1-10, where "1" is the least toxic & "10" is the most. The reason these ingredients would be considered toxic, is because as they absorb into the skin, they can also absorb into the blood stream. This can cause your blood levels to be well above the cutoff for systemic exposure. Systemic exposure is the assessment of the level of toxicity in certain chemicals and how it affects the body. There is a certain level that is still considered "safe", but these ingredients are much higher than those levels. How is this possible? Unfortunately we don't know, and the unknown is part of why Wildflower Beauty by Jessica was created in the first place. To us, toxicity and chemicals is never worth the risk.  Here are some serious ingredients with serious side effects found in common and popular sunscreens:

The first ingredient is Oxybenzone, this ranks as an 8 on the toxicity scale. The FDA study on this ingredient found levels over 430 times higher than the cutoff for systemic exposure. This ingredient is also known to weaken estrogen & many have experienced a skin allergy to it as well. 

The next ingredient is Oxtinoxate. It ranks as a level 5 on the toxicity scale and when studied it had levels 13 times higher than the systemic exposure rate. This ingredient has also caused some skin irritations when tested. 

The last ingredient we will highlight is Homosalate. This ranks as a 4 on the toxicity scale, and when studied had levels over 35 times higher than the systemic exposure cutoff. This ingredient has also been known to disrupt estrogen levels. 

These are just three of the many different ingredients in chemical based sunscreens that can be harmful. I don't know about you, but these facts are enough for us to turn & run! Especially when you consider you should be using sunscreen everyday, and on your kids and even as young as age 1. That means you are exposing your body to these terrible chemicals almost constantly! That's why we created a natural alternative. Let's talk about them!

Our 100% natural sunscreens provide the light SPF you need for your daily use without any harsh chemicals. The ingredients in these products were carefully chosen to provide you with maximum sun protection. With an estimated SPF 15, this should be applied regularly when in sun exposure. We have taken a necessary product, and made it 100% chemical free by using amazing oils, zinc, and natural SPF ingredients like Vitamin E and coconut oil. This SPF 15 sunscreen is the perfect option for your day-to-day to keep you protected from typical sun exposure. In addition to protecting your skin from the sun, our sunscreens are full of skin-hydrating ingredients that actually help your skin just as a lotion would.  All of our products are chemical-free, and definitely do NOT contain any of those harmful ingredients listed above.

Protecting yourself from daily sun damage doesn't have to be as scary as the sun damage itself! We have two incredible, 100% all natural sunscreens to offer you! They are both the same product, however, one is unscented & one is coconut scented (made with alcohol-free food grade coconut extract). It smells amazing and reminds us of long summer days and nights! These sunscreens have an estimated SPF of 15 & are great for daily use*. 

Click here for our Natural Sunscreen.

P.S. Your lips should be protected from the sun too! Click here to check out our tinted SPF 15 Coconut Smooch Lip Balm! (P.P.S. Coconut Smooch is coming soon in a new darker shade!)

*Keep in mind, lower SPF's are not ideal for many hours in direct sunlight.  SPF 15 means that you have an estimated 15x longer in the sun before burning.  If you typically burn in 1 minute, you now have 15 minutes before burning with an SPF 15. In order to fully prevent sun damage, it is always suggested to protect yourself in additional ways from the sun by remaining in the shade, wearing hats and sunglasses, etc.