Debunking the worst sunscreen misinformation on TikTok

Hope you enjoyed this video! I think the next one in this series might be debunking product tests on social media... which ones do you keep seeing? Also you can find out more about my book here: geni.us/TheScienceOfBeauty

Just remember, if the person talking about sunscreen has burnt orange elephant skin... Probably dont pay them attention

When I don't use high sunscreen, I tan and burn. When I do, I don't. 😮. You don't have to be a genius to figure out that suncreen works.

As a dark skin black woman, ask me if I wear mineral sunscreen lol! The best sunscreen for you is the one you will ACTUALLY wear everyday. Not that ghost chalky mess that will turn my whole family blue and purple.

Once, whilst a nurse was taking my blood, she commented on my skin being very pale and told me to get a tan. She said I'm clearly not getting enough sun exposure and therefore not enough vitamin d. I told her that's just my skin colour and I don't want skin cancer so I'm careful. She said, "yeah, wear sunscreen to protect you against cancer, but you still need a tan." It's true. Medical training doesn't make a person know about every health related thing😅 but it seems to make them think they do.

Yay, group therapy with Michelle! As a fellow Australian, it absolutely blows my mind that there are people who don't "believe" in sunscreen. Like, tell me you've never lived somewhere with a UV index above 6 without telling me. My skin would literally be cooked if I used that "animal based" sunscreen with our average UV index of 12 in summer :') I think literally every Australian knows at least one person who has had a melanoma removed at some point, which probably plays a role in our culture around sun protection.

11:30 Maybe the sun won't burn you but Michelle sure will 😭

molecular biologist here - I had no what the actual molecular mechanism was for sunburn beyond generic "DNA damage" until today. Every day is a school day and I am a very happu little nerd to have learnt this!

People also forget that tanning beds were a big thing in the 2000s and it increases your chance of skin cancer.

I can imagine if you use the DIY sunscreen all the neighbourhood dogs will flock to you like a suburban Disney Princess

My mom has had skin cancer, so when i saw a brand basically saying SPF causes cancer, i was pretty annoyed. I cannot believe theres so many totally unrealistic myths/rumors about SPF

As a white dude in his early twenties who has neglected skincare most of his life, your channel has done a great job in dispelling a lot of the misinformation I used to believe. I used to think sunscreen was the devil but I am no longer afraid to wear it. Thank you!

I’m European and guilty of not using sunscreen on a daily basis. Sunscreen causing cancer, imbalances women’s hormones and preventing from getting a tan bc the sun isn’t that strong in Europe were the reasons why I used coconut oil as a sunscreen bc so many blogger, influencer and people said it’s healthier than sunscreen. But everything you explained makes so much sense. I ordered my first spf 50 now 😄 thank you for debunking those things

"They don't look like they care about skincare" 9:10 Oh, Michelle's coming for blood in this one 😂

Someone really wrote to you that "he has access to graduate level research studies and clinical trials not released to the public because he's a Stanford professor"? How do they come up with this misinformation? Firstly, Michelle ALSO has access to research that is behind paywalls. But even if she didn't, everyone has access to all peer-reviewed study abstracts - it is just that some journals are annoying and require subscriptions to access some whole articles. AND, if you really want the article, but don't want to pay for it, you just email any of the authors and they will send it to you FOR FREE. Because there is no such thing as "big science". We all want our research to be out there and to get read. When there is a paywall, it isn't our choice, that is just a consequence that we have to suffer to get our studies out there in the right journals. We hate it too.

You go girl. Huberman takedown: not going out of your way to do it; not going out of your way to avoid it. Perfectly done.

The increase of skin cancer could be for tons of reasons like the ozone depletion, tanning beds, more recreational activities, higher populations in more sunny areas, longer lives, better healthcare, more access to healthcare, etc

As an organic chemist, I appreciate the more in-depth discussion of the mechanism of sunburn. The phrase 2+2 cycloaddition makes me feel right at home.

People that have never been to Australia don’t even know that one could get sunburned in literally 10 min outside — go to Queensland and then you’ll start wearing 50++++ in your home with the blinds down 😂👌🏻

I made sunscreen exactly once…I got sunburned within half an hour. Lesson learned. I lost an older friend to melanoma two years ago. She beat every expectation by living for sixteen years with stage IV melanoma. But it was brutal, and she suffered a lot. Margaret had a message for everyone at her funeral, delivered by her daughter: Wear sunscreen. Always.