Australia’s sun can be harsh. And sunscreen is one key measure protecting us against harmful sun exposure. We asked three scientists about sunscreen facts, myths and choosing the right products.
Key Points
- Using sunscreen in combination with other sun safety steps is non-negotiable in Australia.
- Sunscreens are proven to protect against harmful effects of UV radiation.
- It is never too late to start using sunscreen, but how you apply it matters.
- Experts recommend using an SPF 30+ or SPF 50+ broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen that’s TGA-approved.
- How common is skin cancer and melanoma in Australia?
- What can I do to prevent skin cancer?
- Can sunscreen protect me from skin cancer?
- What is SPF?
- How do I use sunscreen correctly?
- What should I look for when choosing sunscreen?
- Should I worry about Vitamin D deficiency when using sunscreen?
- What are the facts about sunscreen ingredients and DIY sunscreens?
Australia holds the unenviable title of the world’s ‘skin cancer capital’ for having the highest skin cancer rates.
Almost all skin cancers in Australia are caused by excessive exposure to UV (or ultraviolet) radiation, the part of sunlight responsible for sunburns and skin damage over time.
How common is skin cancer and melanoma in Australia?
“Two out of three Australians will develop skin cancer in their lifetime,” Linda Martin says. She is a paediatric dermatologist at Sydney Children's Hospital, Board Advisor at Melanoma Institute Australia and Head of Dermatology at UNSW.
For melanoma, the lifetime risk is one in 15 overall for boys and girls.
“That means that in every class of children starting kindergarten this year, two thirds will get skin cancer as they grow up, and one or two per class will get a melanoma.”
What can I do to prevent skin cancer?
The good news is that we can control our level of sun protection through our behaviour.
And it starts by limiting how long we spend outdoors, and at what UV rating we choose to go outside, Dr Martin says.
Many who grew up in Australia in the ‘80s are familiar with the slogan ‘Slip, Slop, Slap’, which has evolved today into a five-step evidence-based approach to sun safety:
- Slip on sun-protective clothing
- Slop on SPF 30 or above, broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen
- Slap on a broad-brimmed hat
- Seek shade
- Slide on sunglasses
Can sunscreen protect me from skin cancer?
Sunscreen is only one part of our sun protection toolbox.
But using it is important, as Australian scientists have long established its effectiveness in preventing skin cancer.
Dr Martin points to the notable ‘Nambour Trial’, a randomised controlled trial confirming that daily sunscreen use decreases skin cancer incidence.
“After a 10-year follow up period, the melanoma rate in the daily sunscreen group was half.
“It shows that sunscreen does work, it does prevent melanoma, and that even if you start your daily sunscreen use at 50, it's never too late,” Dr Martin says.
What is SPF?
Every sunscreen has a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) number stated on the package.
The higher the SPF, the longer the sunscreen protection lasts.
Australia’s sunscreen regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), considers any sunscreen above SPF 30 to provide ‘effective protection’.
As of 1 August 2024, prominent health body Cancer Council recommends SPF 50+ as the highest available on the market.
How do I use sunscreen correctly?
For sunscreen to be effective, you need to use it the right way, physical chemist Anna Wang, a UNSW Scientia associate professor, explains.
Reapplying every two hours and applying enough, applying it and waiting 20 minutes before you go out, they all matter.Dr Anna Wang
Even with water-resistant sunscreen, reapplication is needed every two hours, as well as after swimming, sweating or using a towel.
Aim for about 5 millilitres (approximately one teaspoon) of sunscreen for each part of your body exposed to the sun.
What should I look for when choosing sunscreen?
There are two forms of UV radiation we get exposed to when out in the sun: UVA and UVB.
They are both linked to skin cancer, so make sure your sunscreen offers broad-spectrum protection, Dr Wang says.
“When sunscreens are listed as broad-spectrum, it means they protect against both UVA and UVB.
“UVB is the one that causes sunburn while UVA […] damages the DNA, which can lead to cancer.”
Your sunscreen should also have a TGA-approval mark on it.
“If you pick up a sunscreen in a supermarket or a chemist, you'll see down the bottom they'll have something that says AUST-L and a long number,” Ian Musgrave, a molecular pharmacologist and toxicologist at the University of Adelaide, explains.
Should I worry about Vitamin D deficiency when using sunscreen?
Dr Musgrave says in Australia, there is no concern that sunscreen prevents you from generating sufficient vitamin D.
“Because we've got so much UV, we can generate enough vitamin D just from casual exposure to sunlight.
The amount of sunscreen we need to stop us developing sunburn and cancer is not going to stop us getting enough UV to generate vitamin D.Dr Ian Musgrave
What are the facts about sunscreen ingredients and DIY sunscreens?
TGA-approved sunscreens contain ingredients in quantities with long-proven history of safe use.
All sunscreens are made from chemicals, including those marketed as ‘mineral-only’.
Both ‘mineral’ and ‘chemical’ sunscreens are safe and effective; they just work in different ways.
“If applied correctly, they will both do the same job,” Dr Musgrave explains.
“Physical/mineral sunscreens have minerals like zinc oxide that basically reflect UV, and chemical sunscreens have organic chemicals that absorb UV.”
Sunscreen technology is impossible to replicate in homemade recipes, so stick to commercially available products.
“People underestimate just how high-tech sunscreen is,” UNSW’s Dr Wang says.
“Sunscreen formulators have spent decades to make these formulations that feel good and protect us.”
Finally, an expensive sunscreen doesn’t mean it’s better than a cheaper one.
It’s best to choose a sunscreen you are more likely to use frequently and correctly, Dr Wang concludes.
This article contains general information only. For advice relating to your personal situation, see a qualified medical practitioner.
Subscribe to or follow the Australia Explained podcast for more valuable information and tips about settling into your new life in Australia.
Do you have any questions or topic ideas? Send us an email to australiaexplained@sbs.com.au
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SBS acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, lands and waterways across Australia.
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You're listening to Australia Explained, an SBS audio podcast helping you navigate life in Australia.
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Do you use sunscreen? If not, well, the experts say you should. If you do use it, are you confident you're using it the right way to stay safe under the harsh Australian sun? Will a more expensive sunscreen protect you better than a cheap one?
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Applying enough, applying it and waiting 20 minutes before you go out, they all matter more than which tube you're choosing at the end of the day.
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This is Australia Explained.
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I'm your host, Melissa Compagnoni, and in this episode, we speak to 3 experts, a dermatologist, a physical chemist, and a molecular pharmacologist to give you the sunscreen facts and breakdown the myths.
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Australians love spending time in the sun, but Australia also has one of the highest rates of skin cancer in the world. Dr Linda Martin explains why. She's head of dermatology at University of New South Wales, a paediatric dermatologist at Sydney Children's Hospital, and a board advisor at Melanoma Institute Australia.
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Australia is the skin cancer capital of the world. 2 out of 3 Australians will develop skin cancer in their lifetime, and the lifetime risk of melanoma is 1 in 15 overall.
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While not the most common, melanoma is the most serious type of skin cancer. Almost all skin cancers in Australia are caused by too much exposure to the sun's UV radiation.
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Dr Martin says the good news is that we can reduce our risk by changing our behaviour.
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So the most important things are controlling our duration of exposure, so how long we spend outside and what type of UV we choose to be outside. And then if you are in the sun, the shade is the most important. Clothing, at least a shirt with sleeves and a collar, a hat, and then sunglasses and sunscreen are really there just to protect the parts of your body you can't protect with the common sense.
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Sunscreen is only one part of sun protection, but Australian research shows it works when it comes to preventing skin cancer. Dr Martin points to a landmark study that followed adults for 10 years.
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Population involved were adults. About half of them were under 50, but about half were over 50. So after a 10 year follow-up period, the melanoma rate in the daily sunscreen group was half. That is incredibly powerful evidence.
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It shows that sunscreen does work. It does prevent melanoma, that it's never too late, even if you start your daily sunscreen use at 50, it's never too late.
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The message is clear. Sunscreen reduces the risk of melanoma, and it's never too late to start.
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Every sunscreen has an SPF number on the label. SPF stands for sun protection factor. In Australia, the Therapeutic Goods Administration or TGA regulates sunscreen as a therapeutic product. It considers SPF 30 and above to provide effective protection. Cancer Council recommends SPF 50 plus, which is the highest level available in Australia.
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A high SPF offers more protection, but it only works if you apply it properly. Physical chemist Anna Wang, a Scientia associate professor at the University of New South Wales, explains.
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If you ask most people, do you reapply every 2 hours, they don't, and so it's much better to reapply a product than to buy one that is, you know, SPF 80
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and has been really rigorously tested by 20 different labs. If you just put that on in the morning and don't reapply, it's not going to be as effective. And applying enough, applying it and waiting 20 minutes before you go out, they all matter more than which tube you're choosing at the end of the day.
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There are two main types of UV radiation from the sun, UVA and UVB. Both can cause skin cancer. UVB causes sunburn.
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UVA penetrates deeper into the skin and can damage DNA, so it's important to choose a sunscreen labelled broad spectrum, which protects against both, Dr Wang explains.
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When sunscreens are listed as broad spectrum, it means they protect against both UVA and UVB because until like maybe 15 years ago, people were really just obsessed with UVB. It's what causes sunburn. What people started realising is that UVA, although it doesn't make your skin red, it actually also damages the DNA which can lead to cancer, and so having a broad spectrum product is very important.
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If you're swimming or exercising outdoors, choose a water resistant sunscreen, but water resistant does not mean waterproof.
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You still need to reapply every 2 hours, and after swimming, sweating, or towel drying. Look for the TGA approved mark on the label.
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Pharmacologist and toxicologist Ian Musgrave from the University of Adelaide explains.
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If you pick up a sunscreen in a supermarket or a chemist, you'll see down the bottom they'll have something that says Aust L and a long number, and that means that they've been assessed by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
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What about cosmetic products like makeup and moisturisers that have an SPF rating on them? These may contain sunscreen materials.
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But they're not sunscreens, Dr Musgrave says.
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Cosmetics can contain sunscreen materials, so long as you don't make a therapeutic claim about that. If its primary goal is to change the skin colour, cover blemishes, cleanse the skin, a whole range of things where the primary purpose is what you look like, but not protecting you from the sun. Now there may be sunscreen materials in there, that means that your cosmetics are slightly protective, but they won't be as protective as the actual sunscreen.
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One persistent myth around sunscreen is that it prevents you from getting all the vitamin D you need.
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In Australia, it doesn't, because we've got so much UV we can generate enough vitamin D just from casual exposure to sunlight, so the amount of sunscreen we need to stop us developing sunburn and cancer is not going to stop us getting enough UV to generate vitamin D.
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Another common misconception is that sunscreens marketed as mineral only are chemical free. All sunscreens are made from chemicals, but this is nothing to worry about, Dr Musgrave explains. Both mineral and chemical sunscreens are safe and effective, but they just work in different ways.
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Physical/mineral sunscreens, where you have minerals like zinc oxide that basically either reflect or absorb
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ultraviolet light. And the inaptly named chemical sunscreens because minerals are chemicals, uh, where we have organic chemicals whose structure means that it absorbs ultraviolet light. If applied correctly, they will both do the same job.
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Being therapeutic goods, sunscreens are manufactured with high laboratory standards to provide consumers with safety and quality assurances. So any claim that a sunscreen product can be made at home is false,
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Dr Wang from the University of New South Wales warns.
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I think one of the things with sunscreen is people underestimate just how high-tech it is. It takes so much work to make a sunscreen that feels nice and works well, and so in homemade products it's really hard to accomplish that. The sunscreen formulators have spent decades trying to make these formulations that feel good and protect us.
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Finally, a higher price does not mean better protection.
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Dr Wang says any TGA approved high protection sunscreen is suitable if you use it properly.
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For most people, if you have a sunscreen and you like the feel of it and you use it every day and reapply every 2 hours, then you're already doing, you know, a really, really good job.
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So, in Australia's intense UV, sunscreen is one of the simplest tools we have to prevent skin cancer, and it works. Choose one you trust, use it generously, and make it part of your everyday routine in the sun.
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Thanks for listening to this episode of Australia Explained, written and produced by Zoe Thomaidou and hosted and mixed by me, Melissa Compagnoni. Australia Explained managing editor is Roza Germian.
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This was an SBS audio podcast. For more Australia Explained stories, visit SBS.com.au/Australiaexplained.
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Subscribe or follow the Australia Explained podcast for more valuable information and tips about settling into your new life in Australia. Do you have any questions or topic ideas? Send us an email to australiaexplained at SBS.com.au.
