[athena123]

Mischevious, did you move this post to start this thread, 'cause I know I didn't! Either way, good move. I never realized how complicated sun protection can be until I started participating in health and beauty forums!

I was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma last year and started researching sunscreens to find my HG facial sunscreen that won't clog pores, leave my face looking shiny, has a nice texture that I'll actually use. I did try Clarins UV40 and think it had the most elegant texture of all, but the price! Sorry, at nearly $40 per ounce I wouldn't use enough of it to give me the protection I need. I had given up on finding a completely physical sunscreen and settled on a chemical/physical sunscreen made by one of my favorite skincare lines www.pureskinformulations.com.

I just tried yet another new sunscreen made by NIA24 that contains both titanium and zinc oxide, so it's completely physical and I think this is finally gonna be it! No chemicals that degrade, lovely light and elegant texture that doesn't clog my pores or cause me to break out and also contains 5% niacin. It leaves my face looking a little white for a few minutes but manages to absorb quickly since it the titanium and zinc are micronized. Even better, it slightly mattifies my face and I noticed my makeup goes on very smoothly on top of this so it can be used as sunscreen AND makeup primer! Since I use mineral makeup, the additional layer of titanium dioxide and zinc oxide also give me another layer of protection. Unless I sweat it off or go for a swim in the ocean, I don't have to worry about reapplying through out the day because physical barriers don't break down.

There are supposed to be some chemical sunscreens that are more stable and DON'T break down, but I'm still uncomfortable with how they work. This isn't based on anything scientific by any means, but I just don't like the concept behind how they work at all. Apparently they sink in and absorb the UVA rays under the surface; at least with a physical sunscreen, the UVA rays are deflected rather than absorbed.

I'll try to dig up some articles from much more informed sources and post them.