TIME: Sunscreen Ingredients Are Absorbed Into Your Blood. Here’s What That Could Mean

There has been an increase in people who use sunscreen every day to protect against UV rays, but how safe is sunscreen for the skin in terms of other active ingredients? The FDA first investigated the effect of sunscreen on skin in the 1970’s when they thought that sunscreen sat on top of the skin, as opposed to soaking into the skin. We now know the latter to be true, so the FDA has conducted a pilot study to look into how the active ingredients are being absorbed into the skin, as well as the bloodstream. The results of this pilot study suggest that further research is needed because there is a risk of cancer due to the absorption at high levels.