I hate sunscreen. There, I said it. It makes me feel gross all over—sticky, itchy…I think it even contributes to my headaches. It smells terrible and rubs off into my eyes. It makes white marks on everything.
Why would I want to subject my kid to that? Well, it’s necessary, of course, if we’re going to be outside.
Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist sunscreen was a welcome surprise, though. We forgot our normal sunscreen on a trip recently and we had a baseball game to attend. My favorite sunscreen at that point was the Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry-Touch sunblock, so it wasn’t a far jump to pick up the Sheer Mist version.
I could barely feel it on my skin. There was no white residue on my body or my clothes and no strong alcohol smell, compared to other spray sunscreens. I didn’t feel as if I were suffocating as I sprayed it on—because I was breathing it in or because of the way it made my skin feel. Nobody got a sunburn.
I know there are some concerns about spray-on sunscreens because you could breathe it in, but in a pinch and a well-ventilated area, I will use it if nothing else is available (and secretly be relieved that I don’t have to deal with the cons of all the other sunscreens I’ve tried).
The store only had a few options and we sprayed it outside. You wouldn’t want to spray this directly on squirmy kids since it would increase the inhalation risk, and you’d never want to spray it directly on their faces or yours. Spray it on your hands and then apply from there.
Find out more about kids’ sunscreens at EWG.org.
Photo credit: Neutrogena
