Dermatologist explains benefits of newly approved sunscreen ingredient

By — Amna Nawaz Amna Nawaz By — Azhar Merchant Azhar Merchant Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/dermatologist-explains-benefits-of-newly-approved-sunscreen-ingredient Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript Audio For the first time in more than 25 years, the FDA has approved a new active ingredient for over-the-counter sunscreens. It clears the way for manufacturers to begin using bemotrizinol, or BEMT, an ingredient that's been used in Europe and Asia since the 1990s. Amna Nawaz discussed why this change took so long and what people should know about it with dermatologist Dr. Rachel Nazarian. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. William Brangham: For the first time in more than 25 years, the Food and Drug Administration has approved a new active ingredient for over-the-counter sunscreens. In a recent conversation, Amna Nawaz got the latest on what consumers need to know. Amna Nawaz: The long-awaited approval clears the way for sunscreen manufacturers to begin using bemotrizinol, or BEMT, an ingredient that's been used in Europe and Asia since the 1990s. Experts are welcoming the move, at a time when more than 8,500 Americans are expected to die from melanoma this year. For more on why this change took so long and what people should know about this new ingredient, I'm joined now by dermatologist Dr. Rachel Nazarian. Doctor, welcome to the "News Hour." Thanks for joining us. Dr. Rachel Nazarian, Dermatologist: Thanks for having me. Amna Nawaz: So what exactly is BEMT and why is it such an effective ingredient for sunscreens? Dr. Rachel Nazarian: So bemotrizinol is one of those unique ingredients that does a great job of blocking both UVA and UVB, but it's not a mineral sunscreen. Typically, we had mineral sunscreens that were always giving that white cast on the skin, but they did a fantastic job of blocking broad spectrum ultraviolet light. BEMT can do that, but it goes on much nicer and has negligible absorption into the system, meaning it's even safer. Amna Nawaz: Is this something that people might find easier to use in some way, more attractive to use? From the consumer's perspective, how should they look at this? Dr. Rachel Nazarian: They should look at this as just an absolute upgrade. I have many patients that go to Europe or go to Asia and they actually get their sunscreen there because they know they're dealing with something that's so much more cosmetically elegant. So it's going to feel great on the skin. It's less irritating and it still does a fantastic job of preventing sun damage and skin cancers. So I really can't find any negative to this. I just think it took a little long to get to the U.S. market, but, in every way, this is something that we should be very excited about. Amna Nawaz: So why did it take that long to get to the U.S. market? If i