Chemical sunscreens also break down in the sun, so they need to be reapplied regularly.
Enter bemotrizinol. This is a broad spectrum chemical sunscreen that is much more stable. “It does not degrade when exposed to sunlight,” Lim said.
Another problem with other sunscreens is that some have been shown to seep into the blood. (It remains unclear whether this is harmful.)
Bemotrizinol “does not cross the surface of the body or be absorbed into the bloodstream, so it has a good safety profile,” said Dr. Stephen Wang, chief of dermatology at Hoag Memorial Presbyterian Hospital in Newport Beach, California.
Dr. Adam Friedman, professor and chair of the department of dermatology at the GW School of Medicine and Health Sciences in Washington, D.C., added that chemical UV filters “are irritating initially, not to mention if someone has acne, rosacea, eczema—people have a hard time sticking with them because they sting.”
“It appears to be better tolerated,” Friedman said of bemotrizinol, “compared to other UV filters.”
“Bemotrizinol will be a welcome addition to the U.S. sunscreen industry,” Wang said.
It will also be the first new UV filter in the US in more than 25 years.
The FDA acknowledged that it took a long time to get to this point.
“The agency has historically acted too slowly in this area, leaving Americans with fewer options than consumers abroad,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary said in a press release.
One of the main reasons is that in the US, sunscreen ingredients are classified as over-the-counter drugs rather than cosmetics, meaning they require clinical trials for safety and effectiveness before they can be approved.
“They don’t look at them that way in Europe,” Friedman said. “That's why they can get results much faster.”
The FDA said a new sunscreen such as bemotrizinol can be brought to market without an approved drug application if it meets certain requirements. To do this, the FDA must first make a proposal. The proposal must undergo a public comment period before a final decision is made and bemotrizinol is added to the list of permitted sunscreen ingredients.
Ben Nichols, an FDA spokesman, said the agency expects the final order to come sometime next summer or fall and that bemotrizinol sunscreen could begin selling in the U.S. as early as late 2026.
