Best Mineral SPF for Dark Skin

By: Dara Udobong ‘23

Easily the biggest skincare myth floating around historically African communities is that dark-skinned people don’t need sunscreen. This was exemplified in the way I shrugged off a summer camp counsellor’s advice to rub on sunblock before we went on a hike (I definitely didn’t know what I was saying) or the diminished sunscreen options available for darker skin tones. A sunburnt picture of me in 10th grade agrees. Darker-skin tones can give the illusion of protection from the harsh sun rays because they mask the tell-tale signs of burns, redness, and inflammation. Nonetheless, overexposure to UV rays can pose as a cancer risk, especially in the never-ending-summers of Southern California. Below is a list of the best un-tinted mineral sunscreens for people with dark sin (without the grey cast!) below $45: