Are Chemical Sunscreens Safe? The Fear vs the Science

The Chemical Sunscreen Scare, Settled

By Julio Pina, HAESKN formulation advisor and award-winning cosmetic chemist. With Eugene Kim, Co-founder & Product Lead, HAESKN (former packaging design lead at Clinique, Estée Lauder Companies), and Sherril HwangBo, Co-founder & Creative Director, former design director at LVMH.

Published 2026-06-16.

Short answer: Chemical (organic) UV filters are permitted by the FDA, and the science supports them. The "chemicals in your blood" headlines came from studies designed to measure absorption, not to prove harm, and no health authority has ever told people to stop using sunscreen because of them. The clearest evidence that the safety bar works is bemotrizinol, the newest filter, which just cleared the FDA's highest standard.

Where the fear came from

In 2019 and 2020, the FDA ran studies that measured how much sunscreen ends up in the bloodstream after normal use. Six common chemical actives, oxybenzone, homosalate, octisalate, octocrylene, avobenzone, and octinoxate, were detected in blood above the FDA's 0.5 ng/mL screening threshold. That number is the level at which the agency decides an ingredient warrants more study, not a line where danger begins.

Those results made for alarming headlines. "Sunscreen chemicals absorbed into your blood" is an easy story to sell, and a whole category of marketing has been built on top of it, nudging people toward "chemical-free" products and away from filters that have been used safely for decades. The detail that rarely survives the headline is what absorption actually means and what the FDA did next, which was nothing like a warning.

What "not GRASE" really means

The six filters above are currently classified as "not GRASE," short for Generally Recognized As Safe and Effective. The phrase sounds damning, and that is exactly why it gets quoted out of context. It does not mean the FDA found these ingredients unsafe. It means the agency wants more data before it will formally designate them as safe and effective, a higher bar than most consumers realize.

Here is the part that matters most. The FDA never told anyone to stop using sunscreen. As the American Academy of Dermatology explains in its sunscreen guidance, the known, well-documented risk of UV damage and skin cancer far outweighs the unconfirmed, theoretical risk from absorption. The Skin Cancer Foundation reaches the same conclusion. The recommendation from dermatology has not changed: keep using broad-spectrum sunscreen, every day.

"Needs more data" and "proven dangerous" are not the same statement. Treating them as identical is the single biggest reason people end up confused, and it is the gap that fear marketing exploits.

The proof point: bemotrizinol clears the highest bar

If you want evidence that the FDA's safety process is rigorous and that chemical filters can pass it, look at bemotrizinol, also known as BEMT or Tinosorb S. On June 9, 2026, it earned FDA GRASE status, becoming the first organic UV filter ever to do so. It has been used in sunscreens across Europe and Asia for years, as CNN reported when the decision came down.

The road to that approval is the real story. According to NPR, the filter's maker, DSM-Firmenich, spent at least $18 million over more than two decades on testing, with the original application filed back in 2005. The result of all that work is striking: bemotrizinol now has more human safety data behind it than any other chemical sunscreen filter currently approved in the United States.

Sit with that for a moment. The newest filter is also the most thoroughly studied. That is the opposite of the "untested chemicals" narrative the fear marketing relies on. Scientific American covered how the ingredient broadens UV protection, and the approval shows the FDA bar is high and that an organic filter can clear it cleanly. We wrote a fuller breakdown in our explainer on the first new sunscreen filter approved in 20 years if you want the deeper version.

Mineral vs chemical is about mechanism, not safety

A lot of the confusion comes from a false binary: mineral good, chemical bad. The actual difference between the two is how they work, not how safe they are. Mineral filters like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide sit on the skin and scatter UV. Chemical, or organic, filters absorb UV and convert it to a small amount of heat. Both approaches are permitted by the FDA, and both protect your skin.

Neither category is automatically safer than the other. A well-formulated chemical sunscreen and a well-formulated mineral sunscreen are both valid choices. The right one for you usually comes down to texture, finish, and how it feels day to day, not a safety ranking. We compared the two head to head in our guide on mineral vs chemical sunscreen, and the honest answer is that "better" depends on your skin and your routine.

One practical reason many people lean toward chemical filters is finish. Mineral formulas can leave a white cast, especially on deeper skin tones, which is exactly the problem we dig into in why sunscreen leaves a white cast. A clear chemical formula sidesteps that entirely.

A word from our formulation advisor

"Chemical equals harmful is a marketing line, not a scientific finding. Every filter approved for sale in the US cleared the same FDA safety bar, and bemotrizinol just cleared the highest one we have ever set. When someone tells you a sunscreen ingredient is dangerous because it is a chemical, they are selling you a feeling, not a fact." — Julio Pina, HAESKN formulation advisor and award-winning cosmetic chemist

Where HAESKN stands

We build the HAESKN SPF 50 Sun Stick on FDA-approved chemical filters because they let us deliver protection without compromise. It is manufactured in the US and FDA-compliant. It goes on clear with no white cast on any skin tone, and it holds up to 80 minutes of water resistance. At $24, it is the formula we reach for ourselves, every day. To be clear, it does not use bemotrizinol; it relies on established, approved organic filters. If you want the regulatory background on those, our 2026 FDA guide to sunscreen filter safety lays it out.

FAQ

Are chemical sunscreens safe to use?

Yes. Chemical, or organic, UV filters are permitted by the FDA, and dermatology groups recommend continuing to use broad-spectrum sunscreen. The absorption studies measured how much ingredient reaches the blood, not whether it causes harm, and no health authority has advised stopping sunscreen use over them.

Does sunscreen really get into your blood?

Some chemical filters can be absorbed into the bloodstream above the FDA's 0.5 ng/mL screening level. That threshold is simply the point at which the FDA asks for more study. Detection at that level triggers further research, not a safety warning, and the known risk of UV damage still outweighs the theoretical risk from absorption.

What does "not GRASE" mean for sunscreen ingredients?

GRASE stands for Generally Recognized As Safe and Effective. When six filters were labeled "not GRASE," it meant the FDA wants more data before granting that formal designation. It does not mean those ingredients were found unsafe, and the agency never recommended that people stop using them.

Is bemotrizinol safer than other chemical filters?

Bemotrizinol earned FDA GRASE status on June 9, 2026, after more than two decades of testing, and it now carries more human safety data than any other chemical filter approved in the US. That makes it exceptionally well documented. It does not mean other approved filters are unsafe; they simply cleared an earlier standard.

Is mineral sunscreen better than chemical sunscreen?

Neither is automatically better. Mineral filters scatter UV and chemical filters absorb it, and both are FDA-permitted and effective. The right choice usually comes down to texture, finish, and how a formula wears on your skin rather than a safety difference.

The bottom line

The "chemicals in your blood" scare came from studies that measured absorption, not harm, and the FDA never told anyone to stop using sunscreen.

"Not GRASE" means the agency wants more data, not that the ingredient is unsafe, and the known risk of UV damage outweighs the theoretical risk of absorption.

Bemotrizinol clearing the FDA's highest bar after 20-plus years and $18 million of testing proves the safety process is rigorous and that chemical filters can pass it.

Daily protection is the goal, and the best sunscreen is the one you will actually wear. If you want a clear, FDA-compliant chemical formula that disappears on every skin tone, the HAESKN SPF 50 Sun Stick was built for exactly that.

About the authors. Julio Pina is HAESKN's formulation advisor and an award-winning cosmetic chemist who guides the brand's filter and formula decisions. Eugene Kim is Co-founder and Product Lead at HAESKN and was previously a packaging design lead at Clinique within the Estée Lauder Companies. Sherril HwangBo is Co-founder and Creative Director at HAESKN and previously served as a design director at LVMH. HAESKN sunscreen is manufactured in the US and FDA-compliant.

Sources

NPR

CNN

Scientific American

AAD Sunscreen FAQs

FDA Sunscreen