The Food and Drug Administration began to write regulations for sunscreens over 30 years ago, but it has yet to finish the job.
This means that sunscreen manufacturers do not need to prove that a product is “waterproof” or “lasts all day,” or that their sun-protection factors (SPF) are as high as they say they are.
Since 1978, the FDA has received requests from seven U.S. senators, a petition from a state attorney general and a congressional mandate to finalize the regulations, the Washington Post reports.
Jane Houlihan, a senior vice president at the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy organization, said the delay was “truly irresponsible. They are decades late in getting this done.”
The FDA drafted rules for sunscreens in 1999, but never issued them after the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association, a trade group, objected to some of the regulations. FDA officials also decided the rules were not comprehensive enough, since they didn’t cover both UVA and UVB radiation.
Then, in 2007, the FDA proposed rules addressing both UVA and UVB radiation, but an FDA spokeswoman said final decisions were again delayed after an outpouring of public comments over the drafted rules.
Last month, the Environmental Working Group issued a highly critical report on sunscreens, and recommended only 39 of 500 sunscreens on the U.S. market. The group disapproved 92 percent of the sunscreens because the manufacturers had exaggerated SPF claims or because the sunscreens contained potentially hazardous ingredients.
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