Allergen Content of Inactive Ingredients in Best‐Selling Sunscreens: A Comparison of Key Product Features

BACKGROUND: Irritant and allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) caused by sunscreens may affect patient adherence and photoprotection. OBJECTIVES: We aimed to compare the presence of inactive allergens from the North American 80 Comprehensive Series (NAC-80) across top-selling sunscreens. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of inactive ingredient lists from all reported best-selling sunscreens from the three largest American online retailers: Amazon.com, Target.com and Walmart.com. Using a custom text-matching algorithm and manual review, we identified NAC-80 allergens and quantified allergen counts per product. We compared inactive allergen load in tinted versus non-tinted, organic versus inorganic ultraviolet (UV) filters, vehicle and various marketed features in sunscreens. RESULTS: We reviewed 176 products. Vitamin E was the most common allergen, followed by acrylate-containing copolymers/crosspolymers, fragrance, and parabens. Organic, spray and sport sunscreens had significantly more allergens than inorganic, stick and non-sport sunscreens, respectively. Tinted and face sunscreens had significantly fewer allergens than non-tinted and body sunscreens. CONCLUSIONS: Allergen content in inactive ingredients varies among best-selling sunscreens, potentially affecting their safety and tolerability. Dermatologists should consider the allergenic potential of not only active but also inactive ingredients of sunscreens when counselling patients.