FDA: We Need Better Sunscreen

A chemical that could offer better protection against the sun’s harmful UV rays has been on the market for over 20 years. But the chemical, bemotrizinol, hasn’t yet been on sale in the U.S.

Now the federal government may finally be ready to approve bemotrizinol, which would be the first new sunscreen ingredient in decades.

The Food and Drug Administration is expected to make a decision in the coming months on a request from skincare giant DSM-Firmenich to approve what’s better known as PARASOL Shield.

Experts say by using the ingredient, some of the current sunscreens on the market in the U.S. could be outperformed. The same protection is used in other countries like Japan, South Korea and France.