Sun Care Products

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is writing tough new rules that would require health warnings on certain tanning oils and would "strongly discourage" sunscreens for babies, alterations that would vastly change the complexion of the tanning industry. The rules also would ban as unnecessary sun blocks with sun protection factors, or SPFs, over 30, said William E. Gilbertson, director of the FDA's over-the-counter drug division, in a telephone interview with The Times.

Thanks to the Internet, you no longer need to trek to the far corners of the world to find the latest beauty balms. However, even in today's global market, some products are hard to get online. If you're planning a trip to any of these five cities, bring home the following beauty must-haves. Just keep the products in their original containers and remember to declare them at customs. Beirut Beesline: This affordable collection of skin, hair and body products is sold in pharmacies.

Drug store and department store makeup counters are full of cosmetics that contain sunscreen. But women who start their makeup ritual with a layer of pure sunscreen don't really need the extra amounts included in other cosmetics. In fact, some skin experts believe the layering of plain sunscreen, sunscreen-infused moisturizers, or sunscreen-enhanced foundations compromises total sun protection. "These products are an automatic protection for women who would otherwise not wear any," says Dr.

Whether they're Olympic contenders or weekend warriors, athletes are a lot alike: They're keenly aware of their bodies, eager for gear that might improve their performance and big users of sunscreen, moisturizers and balms. Now there's a line of skin-care products designed specifically for them.

Los Angeles-based California SunCare Inc., a private-label maker of sun-care products sold in salons, has been sold to a group of private-equity and strategic investors led by Whitney & Co. Terms were not disclosed.

Procter & Gamble Sells Sun Care Unit to Pfizer: The Cincinnati-based company said it has sold its well-known Bain de Soleil line of sun care products to Pfizer Inc. Terms were not disclosed. Last June, Procter & Gamble Co. said it was seeking a buyer for the brand in conjunction with its program to divest certain non-strategic brands. At that time, the company said it had decided to focus on year-round skin care products. Procter & Gamble said the sale will not materially affect earnings.

Thanks to the Internet, you no longer need to trek to the far corners of the world to find the latest beauty balms. However, even in today's global market, some products are hard to get online. If you're planning a trip to any of these five cities, bring home the following beauty must-haves. Just keep the products in their original containers and remember to declare them at customs. Beirut Beesline: This affordable collection of skin, hair and body products is sold in pharmacies.

For four decades, the mischievous image has bared itself to sunscreen buyers on billboards nationwide: an adorable little girl, her tan line and backside revealed to the world by a cocker spaniel tugging at her bikini bottom. But now it's the 1990s, and that overexposed image received a make-over Monday when a 2-year-old boy from Garden Grove was picked from about 100,000 contestants to represent a national sunscreen maker as the Little Mister Coppertone for a new advertising campaign.

InVitro International Inc. said Tuesday that independent research shows that its latest test for evaluating the effectiveness of sunscreens is 93% accurate. The test is meant to complement and in some cases supplant the use of animals in evaluating sunscreens. The product-testing unit of San Francisco's Shaklee U.S. Inc. did the first independent research on Suntex recently and found that it agreed with human test results 93% of the time.

For decades, doctors and the cosmetics industry have encouraged sunbathers and swimmers to use sunscreens to prevent skin cancer. The warnings have been heeded, enough to push sales of sunscreens (sunblocks) and tanning products to a $650 million a year. Nonetheless, the incidence of skin cancer has grown at an alarming rate. An estimated 700,000 Americans will develop skin cancer this year, many in the 20-40 age bracket that was once largely free of the disease.

Under pressure from Congress, government regulators Thursday proposed new "truth in labeling" rules for sunscreen to give consumers clearer, more complete information on protection against cancer-causing ultraviolet rays. Once finalized, the rules would require manufacturers to test products for protection against two types of ultraviolet rays instead of one, as is now standard.

IT used to be so simple. When we needed a sunscreen, we picked either the brown bottle, or the other brown bottle. As long as it said SPF 15 or more, we knew we'd be safe. Or so we thought. As we learn more about how the sun affects the skin, sun care experts are hoping to teach us that not all rays are alike and neither are sunscreens. Some ultraviolet rays (UVBs) coming from the sun cause burning.

CONSTANT worrying about the sun and its power to burn, wrinkle and mottle the skin -- or worse, cause cancer -- comes with the summer territory. But what if there were an extra level of protection, say a pill or a lotion, that helped prevent the most common effects of too much ultraviolet light? Researchers are working on it. "Sunscreens are difficult to use properly," says Daniel Yarosh, president of AGI Dermatics, a Freeport, N.Y.

A sunless tanning lotion induced a deep tan in hairless mice that protected the animals from harmful ultraviolet rays, scientists have reported. The experimental lotion might allow fair-skinned people who otherwise burn to sport protective tans. Sun damage is a leading cause of skin cancer. In Thursday's issue of the journal Nature, the scientists said mice slathered daily with lotion became nicely tanned in a matter of days. With each application, the animals got darker.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last week approved a new sunscreen ingredient used overseas for years but never before in the United States to block a type of radiation that penetrates deeper into the skin. L'Oreal's Mexoryl protects against a broader range of the sun's UVA rays, which can penetrate the skin's lower layer, or dermis. UVB rays from the sun damage only the skin's outer layer, the epidermis.

Interviews conducted by Scott Doggett.

Growing fears that bronzed skin could mean skin problems is bad news for tanning salons, but Chatsworth-based Advanced Safety Devices Inc. thinks it's a golden opportunity. The company, which doesn't shy from using the word gadgety to describe its products, is the U.S. distributor for a watch that measures ultraviolet rays and purports to tell sun bathers how long to stay out to avoid a sunburn.

* Use a sunscreen if you are going to be out for more than 20 minutes. * Know your skin type. Fair-skinned people will burn more quickly than darker-skinned people using the same sunscreen. * If you are fair-skinned, use sunscreens of SPF 15 or higher. * Use sunscreens with both UVA and UVB protection. * Apply sunscreen at least 15 minutes before going outside. * Apply at least 1 ounce of sunscreen to your body, covering all exposed skin.

In the summers of my youth in Palos Verdes, after the unfair, freezing months--down to a hideous 50 degrees--the first days of hot, dry weather made life seem rational again. The veils of shoreline fog lifted, the cruel rains were chased away, even the parents weren't fighting as much. Terry towels, thick and clean, could be pulled, still damp, from humming dryers.

For years we've been told to slather on sunscreen, wear hats and avoid the sun. Now, with new data on the benefits -- and widespread deficiency -- of vitamin D, some scientists and doctors say we may have gone overboard. According to the American Cancer Society, more than 1 million people will be diagnosed with skin cancer this year, almost always because of too much sun. It's no wonder that dermatologists and cancer specialists urge people to protect themselves. But Dr.