Natural Sunscreen

On a recent trip to tropical far north Queensland I accidentally performed an experiment.  Having heard about the natural SPF properties of coconut oil I decided I’d give it a try.  Exhausted from the lead-up of this long awaited holiday and keen to lie on the beach my husband and I laid out our towels in the full sun.  It was about 1pm.  I covered myself from head to toe in organic coconut oil, my husband refused my offer with a grumbling, ‘what do I need that shit for?’ and we both fell asleep.  Sound asleep.  We woke up at about 4.30pm.  Whoops.  Massive whoops.  I am a fair-skinned redhead.  I’ve had to be careful in the sun my entire life.  My husband is an olive skinned Greek/Italian who tans easily.

Keep in mind that I (very fair) used coconut oil and he (olive skinned) used nothing.  I had a little rosiness on my stomach, he was burnt to a crisp.  I kid you not!  By rights I should not have come out of that little mishap so well.  He should have been sporting a glorious tan.  I should have been hospitalised for sunstroke.  Instead I had the start of a tan, and he had a blistering burn.  The only protective factor was the coconut oil.  I was amazed and converted from that moment on.  Thankfully I knew better than to test the theory without covering my face (I did so with a sarong), but the rest of me was glowing. My husband was sore to touch for days and peeled with a vengeance.  He also had to cover up for the rest of the trip.  Pretty sad considering it was only our first day!

I can definitely vouch for the fact that coconut oil works as a glorious natural sunscreen.  It smells amazing, it’s cheap, a little goes a long way and it does not contain harmful chemicals.  How great is that?

Please Note: I DO NOT recommend falling asleep for hours on end in the full sun, certainly not without finding some shade or covering up, but I can recommend coconut oil as a sunscreen.  I still wear a hat in the full sun to protect my face (which gets enough incidental sun anyway), and I carry a light scarf as a cover-up in case I’m caught for a little too long.  It’s important to be smart about it.

Coconut oil is a beautiful carrier oil and can be combined with essential oils for different effects.  I keep a little bowl of it in my bathroom and use it as a moisturiser.  I put a drop of lavender oil and it calms my eczema, also after-sun care or if I have a sunburn.  I also use this combo as a hand cream.

Coconut oil is also naturally anti-fungal, can help control frizzy hair, can reduce the irritation caused by mozzie bites, cold sores and chicken pox.  With a few drops of certain essential oils you can make a chemical-free insect repellent (recipe coming soon).  There are so many uses for coconut oil and I promise to delve a little deeper another day!

If you’re interested to know more have a look at the following links:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3140123/

http://www.squidoo.com/the-best-natural-sunscreen-oils-safe-sunbathing-without-toxic-sunscreens