Looking for a reef-safe sunscreen that uses only zinc oxide as an active ingredient? You’re making a smart choice!
My family has tested over 100 natural mineral sunscreens over the last 10 years, so we know what really works. This brand is pretty good, but in my opinion, if you’re looking for the cleanest ingredients and smoothest application, then head over to my ultimate guide to natural mineral sunscreens and grab one of my top recommended zinc oxide sunscreens instead. My standards are really high though, so this one is still pretty good. 🙂
You can read all the details below to find out why this safe sunscreen brand did not make my top recommended list.
Anarres Natural Health Safe Sun Protection Cream
Overall
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Ease of Application
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Clean Ingredients
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Water Resistant
Details:
Price: $$$$
EWG rating: ?
SPF: 30
Active ingredient(s): zinc oxide (10%), large particles, not even micronized
Other ingredients: water aqua, ** ***sunflower seed Helianthus annus oil, zinc oxide, *cocoa Theobroma cacao seed butter, ** ***beeswax Cera alba, sodium borate, natural vitamin E mixed tocopherols, grapefruit seed extract Citrus grandis in glycerine. *Fair Trade Certified **Organically grown ***Local Ontario
Antioxidants added: Vitamin E, grapefruit seed extract (certificate of purity, not from China)
Where to purchase: only from Anarres Natural Health
Ease of application: – The cream separated into thin liquid and a pile of sediment and was difficult to apply (see photo below)
Scent: unpleasant
Water resistant? Not at all
My experience: I tested the sun protection cream on one half of my body with no sunblock of any kind on the other half. This wasn’t a smart idea, because I was about to be in the sun for 6 hours on the beach. It seemed like the sun cream might have been coming off in the water, but then after I air-dried, I could still see a white film and water droplets would bead up on my arm, so I hoped I was still protected. The strange result of this bad experiment was that I burned on the side with the lotion and not much on the side with nothing. To Anarres’ credit, the creamed side was turned toward the sun and the unprotected side was covered a bit while my daughter slept, but only with a very thin sarong, and I tried to even it out by covering the sun-creamed side as well and then facing the opposite way while in the water. I have no idea what went wrong! I wish I had more time to test the product before the review, but I will continue to check it out and update this review if necessary.
Star Feature: Comes in a glass container, certified safe and fair trade ingredients.
Pros
- Glass container
- Safe and fair trade ingredients from a small company
Cons
- Allowed burns in test
- Totally separated product was hard to apply
Wondering if this one is the very best natural sunscreen for your family?
I organized alllll the sunscreens we reviewed in each one’s recommendation category – one page, at-a-glance to find out what is safe to buy AND works! Print it or save to your phone for reference!
The guide also includes answers to questions people ask me all the time:
- Which brand rubs in the clearest?
- What’s the best for all day outdoor sports?
- How do I save money on natural sunscreens?
- What looks good on ladies’ faces?
- Is there an option that is FAST to apply to wiggly kids?
I’ll send a copy to your email so you can see it right away and find it again later!