With Europe basking in summer sunshine, many people, are unrolling beach towels and untangling the swimming goggles and speedos again.The prospect of sunburn, or worse, could be enough to ruin a holiday, however, so suntan creams and sunscreen lotions too have to be factored in when packing for that day-trip to the beach or a week at a Mediterranean resort.The creams and lotions come with a caveat, with concerns raised in the past that they pollute beaches and seawater as they leach off their sweating and splashing human hosts.
New research reveals that sunscreen contamination may be less harmful to wildlife than previously thought. This study by Aaron Boyd, a PhD candidate at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, demonstrates how exposure to sunscreen is actually a low risk for small aquatic animals compared to some of the sun cream’s individual chemicals.