Summer is officially here which also means vacation season has begun for most Canadians.  Many of us wait all year for these warmer months to head up North to the lake or cottage, to camp, hike and enjoy the great outdoors. Whether you’re planning your summer holidays or sending your kids off to camp, what’s usually at the top of the packing list? Sunscreen and bug spray.  You may be wondering if a sunscreen/ bug repellent combo product exists, however here’s what you need to know about the underlying issue of combining sunscreen and insect repellent.

Although combining sunscreen and bug repellent into one convenient product seems like a great idea, it’s actually problematic and here’s why:

1. The most important reason is that the way you are intended to use sunscreen vs. insect repellent greatly differ.  Most insect repellents contain DEET (N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide), and Health Canada recommends that you should limit how much DEET you put on your skin. Health Canada also limits the maximum allowable percentage of DEET that a product can contain is up to 30%. On any bug spray labelling claims, it must state to use DEET repellents sparingly (every 3 to 6 hours and no more than 3 times a day), unlike sunscreen which is meant to be applied often and liberally (every 2 hours).  So, you cannot have these two contradictory statements on one product package, nor would a combo product be safe and effective for either application.
2. Insect repellants should not be applied to the face and Health Canada also advises that children younger than 12 should NOT use a product with DEET on a daily basis for more than a month.
3. The ingredients in bug sprays can reduce the effectiveness and protective properties of the sunscreen formulation. Likewise, the sunscreen could increase the absorption of DEET and other chemicals from the insect repellent into the body.

Keep reading this blog on DentecSafety.com

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