Welcome to the seventh and final installment of our seven-part Eco Salon Eco-Beauty Approved Guide: Sun Care Products. 

We’ve worked really hard to gather this list from professionals in the field, including Kristen Arnett, Paige Padgett, Jessa Blades, Greta Eagan, Sophie Uliano, Todra Payne, Renee Loux, Starre Vartan and others, along with our very own editors and writers. We’ve looked at ingredients, brand missions and philosophies, considered skin and hair types, all types of concerns and tested several products in each line. We’ve broken it down by category, with multiple options in each, so get ready for lots of options.

We’ve also considered price and tried very hard to include a broad range from luxury to affordable for just about any budget. Even though we’ve listed just one or two product recommendations per brand, it’s hard to go wrong with these companies, so experiment until you find your new must have products! Without further ado, please read on for the 2013 EcoSalon Approved Eco-Beauty Guide!

1. Chocolate Sun 

Created by natural skincare enthusiast Susie Phillips and a botanist using botanicals, herbs and essential oils as the foundation for all formulas, the ingredients is what differentiates the Chocolate Sun Collection from other products on the market.

Product Pick:

Self Tanner (three shades for a variety of skin tones, streak free application)

2. COOLA Suncare 

High performance suncare products that are both delicate and luxurious enough to compliment anyone’s daily skincare regimen, COOLA offers sun protection for a range of skin types and lifestyles; from the sensitive nature of the FACE and LIPS, to the versatile BODY, and the demands of SPORT.

Product Picks:

Face SPF30 Cucumber Matte Finish (everyone, especially oilier skin prone to shine)

Sport SPF35 Citrus Mimosa (for everyone, especially active)

3. Devita 

One of the fastest growing all-natural, 100% PARBEN FREE, PETA Certified, Vegan cosmeceutical skin care line in the country, offering over 100 different DeVita Natural Skin Care products, a complete line of revolutionary aloe-infused mineral color cosmetics, and a professional line of skin care products sold exclusively through

Product Pick:

Solar Body Block (moisturizer with spf, for all skin types & those who hate to wear sunscreen)

4. Love True Natural 

The LoveTrueNatural Team studies and stays current on matters of organic cosmetic news, rules and regulations. They keep their finger on the pulse of the organic and conventional beauty worlds, to provide you with the most cutting edge and safest natural beauty products.

Product Picks:

Broad Spectrum SPF 30 Baby & Family Water Resistant Sunscreen (for everyone, stays put well)

Anti Aging Face & Body Self Tanner (for everyone, good natural color, not orange or streaky)

5. Suntegrity

Suntegrity Face and Body SPF 30 products use only the best physical block (non-nano size zinc oxide) to provide broad spectrum UVA/UVB protection, super anti-oxidants and amino acids to enhance protection and assist skin repair, paired with  non-toxic preservatives to maintain product integrity without sacrificing safety or health.

Product Picks:

Suntegrity “5 In 1” Natural Moisturizing Face Sunscreen, Broad Spectrum Spf 30 ( Light & Medium skin tones, normal to dry – can use instead of a lightweight foundation)

Natural Moisturizing Face Sunscreen & Primer, Broad Spectrum Spf 30 (everyone, better for normal to dry skin)

And there you have it.  Our First Annual Eco Salon Approved Eco Beauty & Personal Care Guide.  If that doesn’t provide you with at least ONE option to trade out, well, you’re way more high maintenance than us.  No excuses!

Read Eco Salon’s 2013 Eco Beauty Approved Guide Part 1: 19 Bath & Body Products here.

Part 2: 41 Facial Care Products.

Part 3: 11 Hair Care Products.

Part 4: 17 Makeup & Color Products.

Part 5: 8 Personal Care & Hygiene Products

Part 6: 6 Fragrance Products

Looking to try healthy beauty products before you buy?  Goodebox delivers 6-7 personalized samples per month to take the guess work out of cleaning up your beauty routine. Try Goodebox today.

The post EcoSalon’s 2013 Eco-Beauty Approved Guide Part 7: 5 Sun Care Products appeared first on EcoSalon.

Lately, I’ve come to think of the sun as a bad relationship. First we’re supposed to stay away from it for our own health. Then we think about jumping back in for short-term visits – just a few minutes a day can’t hurt, right? Next we start questioning our use of protection. And now, for some of us, new information reveals that we’re never able to really say goodbye. Yes, sun equals bad boyfriend!

Nonetheless, people are progressively tanning. Flip on MTV, and you’ve got the so-called Jersey Shore kids (aren’t they all well into their 20s?) sporting skin hues something akin to pumpkin orange. But it turns out that some over-zealous tanners just may not be able to help themselves. New evidence shows that tanning may be as addictive as any substance – and that the medical community is considering “tanning addiction” as a new diagnostic category.

For many of us, tanning addiction rings true. I had a friend in high school, let’s call her Jessica, who proudly sported a year-long tan. After a trip to the beach, she came back with a sun burn so bad she had to wrap her blistered forearms in gauze. Before the scabs were even healed, Jessica was laying out in her backyard hoping to turn her newly-pink skin back into a Hawaiian Tropic glow. Why? Because she felt like she “had” to be tanned.

Now it turns out Jessica’s need may have been beyond her control. As the New York Times reports, this year alone, 3.5 million people will be diagnosed with skin cancer. And it is not likely due to a lack of education about the dangers of UV exposure. A new study from the Skin Cancer Foundation Journal shows that “tanners also report mood enhancement, relaxation and socialization.” They also found that frequent tanners “showed signs of both physiological and psychological dependence.” In other words, some people react to tanning the ways addicts react to alcohol and drugs.

Dr. Richard F. Wagner Jr., a dermatologist at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, has worked on diagnosing tanning addiction. He modified a list of questions used to determine alcohol addiction in terms of tanning. These questions form an acronym called CAGE. As the NY Times reports, these questions are: Have you ever felt you needed to cut down on your tanning? Have people annoyed you by criticizing your tanning? Have you ever felt guilty about tanning? Have you ever felt you needed to tan first thing in the morning – as an eye opener? Answer yes to any of these questions, and you may have an addiction to tanning. Dr. Wagner further points out that the endorphins released from tanning are likely what causes people to over-bake. Other researchers have found evidence that frequent tanners react to “lack of tanning” much as addicts react to withdraw.

So will tanning soon be regarded as an addictive substance warranting regulation? Yes, if the medical community can make it so. What can the rest of us do? Spread the word of awareness – and keep our own skin tones from matching up with Halloween.

For further reading: When Tanning Turns into an Addiction

Image: psycherika

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