Last month while visiting STJ my wife and I were amazed at the number of people liberally spraying sunscreen on the beach. There was one large group on Maho that must have had 4 of 5 people spraying at the same time forming a visible cloud of chemicals that missed their target.

I am not a scientist and have been scolded by my DR for not using enough sunscreen, but there has to be some common ground. It is obvious with the spray that there can be copious amounts of chemicals ending up in the water – and that cannot be good. I had always been taught that you apply sunscreen before you get to beach and allow it to absorb in the skin for 30 minutes before getting wet. Not sure that is true, but it makes sense. If you need to reapply sunscreen… you may have been at the beach too long and it is time to seek out some shade.

I would love to see the National Park Service add “Do Not use spray sunscreen” to their brown signs



In Hawaii there is bill awaiting signature ( Hawaii to ban certain sunscreens harmful to coral reefs ) that may be the first step to curtail some chemicals used in sunscreens. It will be interesting to see if other states or maybe National Parks follow down this trail.

Either way, please consider not using the spray or spray at home. Nobody likes the perfumed cloud on the beach. Please use sunscreen for your protection but apply early. And if you must use sprays please do not use them on the beach in deference to your neighbors and the coral.

Stepping down from soapbox… thank you