{"id":539,"date":"2025-05-14T14:17:49","date_gmt":"2025-05-14T14:17:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/?p=539"},"modified":"2025-05-15T14:58:34","modified_gmt":"2025-05-15T14:58:34","slug":"the-vitamin-d-myth-discouraging-black-people-from-wearing-sunscreen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/14\/the-vitamin-d-myth-discouraging-black-people-from-wearing-sunscreen\/","title":{"rendered":"The Vitamin D Myth Discouraging Black People From Wearing Sunscreen"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Welcome to\u00a0<\/em>Sun Blocked<\/em><\/a>, Refinery29\u2019s global call to action to wake up to the serious dangers of tanning. No lectures or shaming, we promise. Instead, our goal is to arm you with the facts you need to protect your skin to the best of your ability, because there\u2019s no such thing as safe sun.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Of all the Black hair and skincare myths<\/a> I\u2019ve heard throughout the years as a magazine editor (and among my family and friends), the most pervasive is the \u201cBlack people don\u2019t need sunscreen\u201d myth. I\u2019ve heard every anti-sunscreen conspiracy theory<\/a> there is. You may have, too. Our ancestors never wore sunscreen! Black people in hot climates don\u2019t wear sunscreen so why should we? Aren\u2019t Black people immune to UV rays? <\/em>While these are somewhat legitimate queries \u2014 especially considering Black people are rarely included in skincare research \u2014 dermatologists and estheticians are clear: Yes, Black and brown people should wear sunscreen<\/a>. Period.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Regularly applied SPF<\/a> is the best defense against harmful UVA and UVB rays, premature aging, hyperpigmentation, and skin cancer<\/a> \u2014 this includes melanated people who are less likely to develop sunburn. And yet, recently a colleague asked a question that made me pause: \u201cIf Black and brown people are more prone to vitamin D deficiency, should Black people wear sunscreen?\u201d<\/p>\n

I can understand the need for clarification. To say that Black and brown people need<\/em> the sun is an understatement. According to the UK\u2019s National Health Service (NHS), those with darker skin are more likely to have a vitamin D deficiency<\/a>, as increased melanin in the skin reduces a person\u2019s ability to make vitamin D from sun exposure. Depression, fatigue, bone and joint pain, muscle cramps, and a low immune system are just some of the reported symptoms of a vitamin D deficiency, making it important for darker-skinned people, like myself, to acknowledge our increased risk. However, because of this, many \u201canti-sunscreen conspiracy theorists<\/a>\u201d are falsely purporting that those with a vitamin D deficiency should ditch sunscreen entirely, especially on TikTok where there is a reported anti-sunscreen movement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For R29\u2019s Sunblocked series<\/a>, Black dermatologists and estheticians helped Unbothered demystify the science concerning vitamin D and sunscreen to ensure misinformation doesn\u2019t stand in the way of adequate sun protection.\u00a0<\/p>\n

DashDividers_1_500x100<\/title><\/div>\n<h2><strong>Does wearing sunscreen prevent vitamin D absorption in darker skin tones?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Since the pandemic, there have been more necessary conversations in mainstream media about how vitamin D deficiency uniquely <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vice.com\/en\/article\/akdyqk\/uks-vitamin-d-advice-puts-black-people-at-risk-and-the-government-knows-it\">affects Black people\u2019s health<\/a>, and there\u2019s still more to learn. Understandably, many Black people feel conflicted by some of the advice they receive to \u201ctop up\u201d vitamin D levels by going outdoors. Considering that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhs.uk\/conditions\/vitamins-and-minerals\/vitamin-d\/#:~:text=People%20at%20risk%20of%20vitamin%20D%20deficiency,-Some%20people%20will&text=The%20Department%20of%20Health%20and,they're%20frail%20or%20housebound\">body creates vitamin D<\/a> from direct sunlight on the skin when outdoors, can sunscreen \u2014 which protects skin from UVB rays \u2014 prevent vitamin D production?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSeveral studies have looked at the effect of sunscreen on vitamin D production, and there is little evidence that wearing sunscreen reduces the production of vitamin D by the skin,\u201d says Dr. Derrick Phillips, a London-based consultant dermatologist. \u201cHowever, these studies mainly involved fair-skinned populations,\u201d he adds, referencing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/books\/NBK481857\/table\/chapter6.t1\/\">the Fitzpatrick scale<\/a>, a dated measurement used to estimate the response of different types of skin to ultraviolet (UV) light. It has been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/sciencetech\/article-9700355\/Google-searches-new-measure-skin-tones-curb-bias-products.html\">criticized for its Eurocentric bias<\/a> in the past.<\/p>\n<p>However, scientists agree that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.skincancer.org\/blog\/sun-protection-and-vitamin-d\/#:~:text=Studies%20have%20never%20found%20that,maintain%20their%20vitamin%20D%20levels.\">people who use sunscreen daily can maintain their vitamin D levels<\/a>. \u201cMost people don\u2019t wear enough sunscreen [on a daily basis] for them to actually worry about the amount of vitamin D their body can truly absorb,\u201d says <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/alicia.lartey\/\">Alicia Lartey<\/a>, esthetician and skincare content creator. \u201cLiving in the northern hemisphere, you would have to take extra vitamin D supplements anyway,\u201d she explains. \u201cI always tell people to wear sunscreen, regardless of whether you are vitamin D deficient.\u201d While regular sun exposure can help those who are vitamin D deficient, Lartey suggests prioritizing supplementation rather than standing around in the sun to see long-term health benefits.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Should Black and brown people wear SPF in the winter?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I live in the UK, where it can be \u201cbad vibes\u201d for various reasons, and the country\u2019s dark and gloomy winters are particularly miserable. It\u2019s during the winter months when I and many Black and brown folk are encouraged to take vitamin D supplements to support our immune health and stabilize our mood \u2014 especially when living in colder climates. \u201cWe know that skin of color is not very good at converting UV rays into vitamin D, therefore most people with Black and brown skin in the UK are vitamin D deficient and should supplement throughout the year, especially during the winter months,\u201d explains Dr. Phillips. Dr .Phillips adds that while the majority of vitamin D is absorbed by the skin, its effects benefit the entire body.<\/p>\n<p>Doctors and scientists agree that some <a href=\"https:\/\/cios.icb.nhs.uk\/health\/nutrition\/vitamin-d\/#:~:text=However%2C%20most%20people%20can%20make,staying%20safe%20in%20the%20sun.\">sun exposure is one of the best ways to get more vitamin D<\/a>, as well as taking supplements. However, in the UK, the sun is only strong enough for us to <a href=\"https:\/\/cios.icb.nhs.uk\/health\/nutrition\/vitamin-d\/#:~:text=However%2C%20most%20people%20can%20make,staying%20safe%20in%20the%20sun.\">make the vitamin from sunlight between April and September<\/a>. Similarly in the US, if you live\u00a0north of Los Angeles on the West Coast and north of North Carolina on the East Coast, per <a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.com\/37th-parallel-vitamin-d-deficiency-8364004#:~:text=%E2%80%9CAlong%20the%2037th%20parallel%2C%20during,strong%20enough%20to%20do%20so.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Health magazine (opens in a new tab)\">Health magazine<\/a>, it\u2019s reported that the lack of winter sun makes people more at risk of a vitamin D deficiency.\u00a0With that being said, should <a href=\"https:\/\/www.refinery29.com\/en-us\/spf-sunscreen-benefits-fall-winter\">Black people bother wearing SPF in the winter<\/a>?<\/p>\n<p>Lartey says that there often times when the UV index \u2014 a measurement of the strength of sunburn-inducing UV rays \u2014 is very low in the UK. Elsewhere, a UV Index reading\u00a0of 0 to 2 means low danger\u00a0from the sun\u2019s UV rays for the average person (it\u2019s worth checking your state or city\u2019s <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"UV index rating (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"http:\/\/UV Index Search | Envirofacts | US EPA\" target=\"_blank\">UV index rating<\/a> for clarity). In these instances, Lartey says that wearing sunscreen isn\u2019t particularly necessary. But it\u2019s beneficial to get in the habit of applying it daily. \u201cI don\u2019t think I\u2019m sophisticated enough to remember to check the UV index and then apply my sunscreen as needed,\u201d Lartey says. \u201cIt\u2019s a lot easier for people to build the habit of wearing SPF every single day so when the sun is out, it\u2019s not an extra step that you have to take on.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Why should Black people take sun protection seriously?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>While more melanin means more sun protection than people with paler skin tones, it doesn\u2019t make Black people exempt from sun-related skin issues. \u201cThe high concentration of melanin in Black and brown skin affords a degree of protection equivalent to SPF 13. However, prolonged exposure to harmful UV rays will still result in damage to skin cells, and structures within the skin. Sunburn can also occur with prolonged exposure to high-intensity UV radiation,\u201d explains Dr. Phillips. \u201cDarker skin tones are more susceptible to hyperpigmentation and some conditions that are more prevalent in skin of color, such as lupus, are aggravated by sunlight. So there are many good reasons for people with highly melanated skin to wear sunscreen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"mailto:info@alicialartey.com\">Alicia Lartey<\/a> adds more food for thought. \u201cOur definition of Black is very broad as well. My Blackness is not the same as my mum\u2019s Blackness, who has more melanin than me, so she wouldn\u2019t burn as quickly as I do in the sun. The rapper Ice Spice, for example, I would categorize on the Fitzpatrick scale as 1-2, meaning she\u2019s very, very light but is considered Black. So I do think that there are certain nuances,\u201d she adds. In recent years, SPF made with Black and darker-skinned people in mind has become more prevalent on the market. Black-owned brands such as <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Black Girl Sunscreen (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Black-Girl-Sunscreen-Moisturizing-White-Residue\/dp\/B0CV9R8DTK\/ref=sr_1_2?crid=333TJSD1KLBTY&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.BDu6mBXkAplcH8pgtq2G_xPIMBQ-fOXJv6j6aiiLETjy0i4BpU9QNDzMWSNLlm6JsLAPBzs71e0ecYKENNXvKIeu6JyAolbaxJVVzYBXPH559RHkiRoxgxDuKyKjsU2V_p5UxmRmRk3fo4JfJ2FkL5Uss0j2Y56E-Y3338D-u-B1wipSErMwrdX286Bhxzc77pkUZn1TKs22tJXi653Af4hvmXgIDZs19aAEWDSQeR1HFr2AjfsgE-VelgC1nxwpRo8fHdj9e-Kn5IRDlGp33xy1ZD_HyuuRl1Jhp3lvpkE.ZlcQ3rUCZt7s3SiRmI--97cL5zYmMX394PwkJ1teCDs&dib_tag=se&keywords=black+girl+sunscreen&qid=1715177114&sprefix=BLAXK+GIR%2Caps%2C150&sr=8-2\" target=\"_blank\">Black Girl Sunscreen<\/a> and inclusive products such as <a href=\"https:\/\/supergoop.com\/products\/unseen-sunscreen?variant=40722206752866\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Supergoop!\u2019s Unseen Sunscreen (opens in a new tab)\">Supergoop!\u2019s Unseen Sunscreen<\/a> ensure our communities are given adequate protection without having to deal with the dreaded white cast, and Black skincare content creators, such as<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@skinandbase\/video\/7312759943474531616\"> Janet (@skinandbase<\/a>) and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/theskinpriest\/\">Okikiola Emaleku (@theskinpriest<\/a>), are doing the Lord\u2019s work when it comes to encouraging daily sunscreen use in our communities. Happily, Lartey also reports that large strides are being made within the beauty industry to alleviate the \u201cmedical distrust\u201d that many Black people have about some of the skincare advice aimed in our direction. For example, there are now many Black experts in the sunscreen formulation field.\u201d\u00a0 \u201cWe have many Black experts in this field,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen I do product development, they so many Black people that I meet behind the scenes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Largely, this shows that attitudes are improving when it comes to including darker-skinned people in this (very important) conversation. And, over time, the myth that Black people don\u2019t need to wear sunscreen is increasingly falling out of favor. The evidence points to one conclusion: Sunscreen is highly beneficial for darker skin tones, it\u2019s the anti-SPF myths that are the most detrimental to our skin health.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Dermatologist and esthetician-approved sunscreen brands for dark skin tones<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>If you\u2019re not sure where to start, consider these expert-approved sunscreens that have broad-spectrum formulations that protect your skin from UVA and UVB rays and do not leave a white-grey cast.<\/p>\n<p><em>This article was originally published on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.refinery29.com\/en-gb\/unbothered-uk\">Unbothered UK<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.refinery29.com\/en-us\/skin-sun-damage-editors-dermatologist-photos?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss_linkback1\">How Much Sun Damage Does Team R29 Really Have?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.refinery29.com\/en-us\/how-much-to-spend-sunscreen-spf?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss_linkback2\">What Is The \u201cCorrect\u201d Amount To Spend On SPF?<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.refinery29.com\/en-us\/best-sunscreen-spf-reviews?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss_linkback3\">I Tried $578 Worth Of SPF \u2014 Here’s What’s Worth It<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Welcome to\u00a0Sun Blocked, Refinery29\u2019s global call to action to wake up to the serious dangers of tanning. No lectures or shaming, we promise. Instead, our goal is to arm you with the facts you need to protect your skin to the best of your ability, because there\u2019s no such thing as safe sun.\u00a0 Of all…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":541,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=539"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":542,"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/539\/revisions\/542"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/baldheadedgirls.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}