Why doesn't the US have better sunscreen?

Summary of Why doesn't the US have better sunscreen?

by NPR

9m•July 20, 2026
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Overview of Why doesn't the US have better sunscreen?

This NPR Indicator episode explains why U.S. sunscreen has lagged behind products available in places like Japan and Europe, and how a long FDA approval freeze kept newer, more elegant UV-filter ingredients out of the American market for decades. The story follows skincare creator Charlotte Palomino, who became an advocate for better sunscreen after discovering how much better foreign sunscreens felt and performed. It also explores a policy debate: whether the FDA is too cautious, and whether the U.S. should more readily accept approvals from other trusted regulators.

Why U.S. Sunscreen Has Fallen Behind

  • In the U.S., sunscreen ingredients are regulated as drugs, not cosmetics.
  • That means new ingredients must prove both:
    • safety
    • effectiveness
  • The FDA had not approved a major new sunscreen ingredient since the late 1990s, leaving U.S. products behind global options.
  • As a result, many American sunscreens are described as:
    • thicker
    • stickier
    • less pleasant to use
  • The episode ties this directly to public health, noting that millions of skin cancer cases are diagnosed in the U.S. each year and that better sunscreen could help prevent many of them.

Charlotte Palomino’s Role

  • Charlotte Palomino, founder of the clinical skincare brand Dew, encountered a Japanese sunscreen that changed her perspective.
  • She was struck by its texture and performance, especially compared with U.S. products.
  • After learning about the regulatory bottleneck, she:
    • contacted lawmakers
    • made educational videos
    • encouraged people to pressure Congress and the FDA
  • Her advocacy helped turn sunscreen reform into a more visible issue.

The Long Road to a New Ingredient

  • The episode highlights DSM-Firmenich, a company that spent years and at least $18 million seeking FDA approval for a new sunscreen filter.
  • The ingredient discussed is bemotrizinol (transcript variants appear, but this is the likely intended name).
  • The company conducted clinical studies on nearly 500 participants representing the diversity of the U.S. population.
  • The FDA process was delayed further by the COVID-19 pandemic, which shifted agency priorities.

Legislative and Regulatory Changes

  • The CARES Act helped create a more streamlined pathway for sunscreen ingredient review.
  • Later reforms allowed the FDA to accept a broader range of safety and efficacy evidence.
  • In the episode’s timeline, these changes eventually led to the approval of bemotrizinol, described as the first broadly used new sunscreen active ingredient in about three decades.

Bigger Debate: Is the FDA Too Risk-Averse?

  • Economist Alex Tabarrok argues the sunscreen backlog reflects a broader problem: the FDA can be overly cautious.
  • His view:
    • extreme precaution can itself cause harm
    • delays can keep safer or more effective products from reaching consumers
  • He introduces the idea of “peer approval”:
    • if a trusted regulator like the European Medicines Agency approves something, the U.S. should consider automatically accepting that decision
  • He compares this to the U.S. trusting foreign driver’s licenses.

Counterpoint and Risk Concerns

  • The episode also raises the classic fear of approving something too quickly, using thalidomide as an example.
  • Tabarrok argues that fears of visible drug harms can overshadow the less visible harm caused by delayed access to beneficial treatments.
  • He frames this as the problem of the “invisible graveyard”—people harmed by inaction are harder to see than those harmed by a bad approval.

FDA’s Response

  • The FDA says earlier sunscreen ingredient applications lacked sufficient scientific information about safety.
  • It also points to outside expert groups that support its evidence requirements.

Main Takeaways

  • The U.S. sunscreen market was held back for decades by a slow, drug-like approval process.
  • Better sunscreen matters because UV exposure contributes to skin cancer risk.
  • Regulatory reform, advocacy, and industry pressure eventually helped open the door to newer ingredients.
  • The episode uses sunscreen as a case study in the broader question of how cautious regulation should be.

Notable Ending

  • Charlotte plans to develop products using the newly approved ingredient.
  • The host closes with a personal note: the episode actually led him to start washing his face—a lighthearted reminder that skincare habits can be changed by better information and better products.