At the most basic UVA, UVB and UVC are the ultraviolet rays that reach the earth from the sun and, as the Skin Cancer Foundation says, UVA and UVB rays cause skin cancer, premature aging, wrinkles, sunburn and even eye damage (sunglasses are a good idea!). Luckily the right sunscreen - including Block Island Organics sunscreen - can protect you. Let's explore a little more with a lovely infographic and then additional details. [More]

The mighty sunscreen protects against skin cancer? That's what research out of Australia shows. It also saves something called the p53 "Superhero" gene which turns out is a pretty darn important gene. [More]

If you vacation in an area with protected coral reefs you might notice that wearing sunscreen in the water is banned outright or that only certain sunscreens are permitted. Why so? Well some research shows that many common ingredients found in the most popular sunscreens bleach and kill coral reefs. Fortunately, Block Island Organics does not use these ingredients. [More]

Yes there is actually a scientifically recommended amount of sunscreen everyone should use. I never knew this until I started a suncare company! If you are like me you probably slap a little sunblock on, assume you have it covered and go about your day. No real rhyme or reason. However, the reality is most people do not apply anywhere near enough. But don't worry - I'm here to help you with specific info and photos on how much to actually apply. [More]

Whether you call it sunblock or sunscreen, you might not know what "mineral" means. Well, I'm here to shed some light on the subject. At its most basic it means a sunscreen where the active ingredients are titanium dioxide and / or zinc oxide - ingredients found on mother earth. What is an active ingredient? It's the thing that stops the suns rays from doing their harm (it protects you from UVA and, ideally, UVB rays). So the quick question that brings up is, how do I tell if my sunscreen is mineral? [More]