Nanotechnology has received a great amount of often fearful coverage during the past year. But what exactly is Nanoscience?

Nanoscience is the study of very small things. Nanoparticles are classified as any piece of matter that's less than 100 nanometers in diameter, or about 1/1000th the diameter of a human hair. Although rare, it has been occassionally observed that under some circumstances ultra-small particles may behave differently than their larger counterparts, which is the primary cause of nano-induced technophobia. In reality, the behavior of nanoparticles is much more related to chemistry than particle size. Different compounds of the same nanosize will behave very differently as a result - lumping them all together as 'dangerous nanoparticles' is illogical.

That's the scientific explanation.

In understandable, common sense terms, nanoparticles are air molecules, dust and smoke. There are 10,000 nanoparticles in every thimble-full of air that you breathe and just about all forms of matter eventually end up as nanoparticles. The fact is, nanoparticles surround us and everything we do, and have always been part of the evolution of life itself since the first organisms reproduced themselves. Science has just recently come up with a new name that sounds scary for this area of study.

This doesn't mean that nanoscience is completely harmless, but it shouldn't be feared. All chemicals can be misused or kill, including water. Sunscreens that contain mineral active ingredients like zinc oxide have always contained nanoparticles - even the stuff that lifeguards used on their noses decades ago and the diaper rash cream our moms used on our behinds had them - because zinc oxide is basically the smoke you get from burning zinc. Previously, these particles were called 'fines' because the term 'nanoparticle' hadn't been introduced yet.

Kabana has always used nanoparticle zinc oxide in several of our products, and we've always fully disclosed this information on our ingredients page because we want our customers to understand our products. The benefits from using nanoparticle zinc oxide are transparency and more even UV protection, which are two critical components of a good sunscreen.

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FDA has published new proposed amendments to the 1999 OTC monograph on sunscreen labeling. In a nutshell, the new marketing information will indicate the level of UVA protection, from "no UVA protection" to a level of four stars, indicating the highest level of UVA protection.

FDA has also proposed a new warning message in the Drug Facts table: "UV exposure from the sun increases the risk of skin cancer, premature skin aging, and other skin damage. It is important to decrease UV exposure by limiting time in the sun, wearing protective clothing, and using a sunscreen."

KLRC views these amendments as a step in the right direction, but believes that unless FDA chooses to regulate and penalize companies that currently use marketing language in violation of the 1999 monograph, adding these additional regulations will do little to enhance consumer protection and limit skin cancer incidence.

New laws that are not enforced change nothing.

Please take a look at FDA's proposed Amendments to OTC Monograph

If you'd like to comment on their efforts, FDA has opened a public comment window through November 27. If you have something you'd like to tell the administration about sunscreen use, labeling practices, or how they can do a better job protecting the public from skin cancer, click Comment on FDA's proposed ammendments, and choose 'Individual consumer' as your category.

Kabana only uses natural ingredients. Read Our Labels. You Understand.