Watchdog to probe sunscreens that didnt offer protection as advertised

Australia’s medicines watchdog has confirmed it will investigate a report claiming several sunscreens did not offer the sun protection they advertised.Consumer group CHOICE delivered the report last week, claiming it had tested 20 popular SPF50 and SPF50+ sunscreens and found 16 of them fell short of the protection they advertised.SPF stands for “sun protection factor” and is the measure of how well the sunscreen protects a user from the sun’s UV rays.An SPF 50 sunscreen is meant to block about 98 percent of the rays, meaning it will take 50 times longer to get burnt than with unprotected skin.The consumer group tested the products with experts in an accredited sunscreen lab, with four products returning SPF results in the 40s, four in the 30s, and seven in the 20s.The popular brands tested include Banana Boat, Cancer Council and Bondi Sands sunscreens.In one example, the Banana Boat Baby Zinc Sunscreen Lotion SPF 50+ tested at 28, while the Coles SPF 50+ Sunscreen Ultra Tube tested at 43.The Therapeutic Goods Administration has responded to the report and said it would investigate CHOICE’s findings and take “regulatory action as required”.“Sunscreens with a primary purpose of UV protection are considered to be therapeutic goods and are regulated by us to ensure their safety, quality and efficacy,” the watchdog stated.“It is a requirement under therapeutic legislation that statements on sunscreen labels are truthful and not misleading.“It is also a legislative requirement that a sponsor of a therapeutic sunscreen product holds evidence that supports the SPF claim they make at the time they include the medicine in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods.“We will be investigating the CHOICE findings and will take regulatory action as required.“We cannot comment on individual matters including whether products may be subject to investigation or compliance and enforcement activity, or the status of any such investigation and activity.”On...