If you have kids and there is an aerosol sunscreen in your house, please throw it away. What kids are going through after having it applied is too awful to risk it.
In today’s world, there are plenty of dangers to go around for kids. Most parents are so careful to do everything right. Unfortunately, even when they do their best, bad things can happen. One little boy’s feet melted playing at a splash pad, while his poor Dad stood right there and missed the danger. Then there was the Mom who took her daughter for allergy testing and something heartbreaking happened.
We will always do our best to share when something happens to a child that we think might help parents keep their children a little safer and healthier.
Sounding the Alarm On Aerosol Sunscreen
Rebecca Cannon and her 14-month-old daughter were visiting Rebecca’s sister in Canada according to Today. The weather was nice and they decided to get outside and enjoy it.
When she searched for the sunscreen she usually uses on her little girl, she realized she didn’t have it. She asked her sister if she had any sunscreen for kids.
She was given a Banana Boat spray for kids. The product claimed to be alcohol-free, tear-free, and sting-free, with a 50+SPF. It also declared the product safe for kids over 6 months.
Everything checked out. I would have trusted it because of all those things written right on the can.
Before you ask, this Mom did not spray it directly on her child’s face. She knew better than that, but even if she hadn’t, the directions warned adults should spray it into their own hands before putting it on a child’s face.
That’s exactly what Rebecca did, and again, I would have done the same thing. Finally, she put a hat on her baby girl and off they went. I would have thought that was about as safe as she could have been, other than staying in the house.
The Harrowing Visit to the ER
A few hours later Mom began to notice a rash creep across her little one’s face. She was concerned, but not so much so that she felt a trip to the ER was warranted.
The next morning, however, she scooped up her daughter and rushed to the Emergency Room. Where a rash had been, there was now severe swelling and blistering.
The ER doc told her that her daughter’s face was covered in 2nd-degree burns! Rebecca couldn’t figure out what happened. She’d protected her daughter from the sun, so how in the world did she get so badly burned?
The cream she got from the doctor made it even worse, and so she was immediately referred to a dermatologist. That’s where they began to put the pieces together. Her daughter was suffering from a caustic burn caused by the sunscreen.
Yes, She Got Caustic Burns from Aerosol Sunscreen
I’ll be honest. I had to look up what a caustic burn was. Now I know that it’s a chemical burn that can affect both your skin and internal organs.
Here are some of the chemicals that can cause caustic burns, according to Healthline.
Car battery acid
Bleach
Ammonia
Denture cleaners
Teeth whitening products
Pool chlorination products
You should also know that Consumer Reports said to stay away from spray sunscreen for kids for now. I don’t know about you, but I believe I’ll follow that advice. Better safe than sorry, in my opinion.
What to Do Next
I strongly encourage you to visit the EWG’s guide to sunscreen for children. (The EWG AKA Environmental Working Group is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
“EWG provides information on sunscreen products from the published scientific literature, to supplement incomplete data available from companies and the government. The ratings indicate both efficacy and the relative level of concern posed by exposure to the ingredients in this product – not the product itself – compared to other sunscreens. The ratings reflect potential health hazards but do not account for the level of exposure or individual susceptibility, factors which determine actual health risks, if any.”
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54 comments on “Mom Warns About Aerosol Sunscreen”
Dear heavens, ever heard of a face stick? Why in the name of heaven would you use something with a propellant and alcohol base on a face?
The product was alcohol-free, sprayed onto the mother’s hands and applied with hands per directions!
Many many years ago my daughters face broke out like that. Â There were no aerosol sunscreen at that time. Â It too was banana boat. Â I have not bought that brand since. Â
My daughter is now 9 but as a toddler banana boat sunscreen had a horrible effect on her. Never connected it til recently but she is severely allergic to nuts and most who i talk to about her allergy say banana boat effects their children too! Coincidence maybe but i stay away from that brand and use different spray sunscreen with no problems.
I’ve used spray sunscreens on my child hundreds of times in the Florida heat and have not had a single
Problem. I’ve used every brand as well, whatever is on sale at the time. One persons experience is not everyone’s. Obviously the child was allergic or something around that line considering millions of people use these sunscreens without issue. Do your research people.Â
A few years ago I used Banana Boat sunscreen on my boys constantly applying it like the bottle said and both of my boys got burned and blistered really bad.
I did send an email to Banana Boat and they apologized and sent me coupons for more products that went straight in the trash.
I now use Bullfrog which so far works great.
So whats the difference in ingredients between an aerosol and regular sunscreen that would cause chemical burn?
Most lotions & sunscreens have a petroleum base & this child may be allergic to petroleum. I am. Cannot use any thing w/petroleum. I use pure cocoanut oil or Crisco  on my skin if dry. The only commercial product I have found w/o petroleum base is Udder Cream. I recently discovered I can tolerate Noxzema.
I find the spray sunscreen doesn’t work as well as the lotion so stopped buy after first time….
Happy to see that Kyla is still smiling. Such a beautiful child. God bless you and your family.
As an adult, I personally used Banana Boat aerosol sunscreen 10 years ago. Â That was the last time I used it ever. Â I followed instructions and went swimming in a pool for a few hours. Â I was a little red but figured it was just because I was in the sun and water. Â Then my face and arms started blistering. Â It looked more like a burn and it was extremely painful. Â I figured it was just sunburn. Â Then it took several weeks for it to heal. Â I only use sunscreen if I know that I will be out for a prolonged amount of time. Â The next time I used it was for a picnic where I was outdoors. Â Again, Â the same thing happened. Â After that, Â I tried using other American brands cream sunblocks and would break out into rashes. Â I feel like after using the Banana Boat aerosol sunblock my skin became more sensitive because I never experienced any allergic reactions to anything before using Banana Boat. Â I realized at that point that I was probably allergic to sunscreen and stopped using sunscreen because of this experience. Â
After reading this post,  I realized that it may have been a chemical burn.  I use Korean and Japanese sunscreens(Missha and Shiseido) now and don’t have any reactions.  But when I use American sunscreens, I break out into rashes and hives (brands include Banana Boat, Aveeno, and Neutrogena)Â