XpBonaire IslandLife Feature Story
The sun is awesome and luckily we have enough of it here on Bonaire. A dip in the sea, tanning sessions under palm trees or a lazy breakfast in the sun can give us plenty of opportunities to get tan. But before we know it, we have a sunburn, despite thinking we’d done everything possible to protect ourselves, unfortunately, the sun rays can be dangerous as well.
UV radiation causes skin damage, cancer and is the number 1 cause of wrinkles.
Prevent & Care
Prevention is key, so make sure you always apply enough sunscreen everywhere and repeat every 2 hours. To keep your own natural skin barrier at its best and in good condition, it’s also important to spoil yourself with a facial once in a while and let your beautician give you some advice about your skincare routine and products.
We Care
After some research on sunscreens, we now know that sunscreen products containing oxybenzone and octinoxate can be harmful to our bodies and are the most harmful for our coral reefs. As of January 1st, 2021, it will be prohibited on Bonaire to use sunscreens that contains these ingredients. This makes Bonaire the second destination, after Hawaii, to take action against these toxic ingredients and make sure that we have coral friendly products on the island.
Coral Reef Save
Please be aware that not all that is written on a product label has to be true. For example, “Coral friendly “.
The best for the coral is not to use any sunscreen over SPF 50, be waterproof and have no spray.
It is still hard to find reef save sun protection, but there are couple of options, easily available at the DA drugstore located in HATO.
Ocean Potion is an affordable sun protection line. The metallic blue line is free of oxybenzone and paraben. Again, try to stay away from spray and SPF over 50.
Tropical Nature
Tropical Nature is the next big thing on the island. This sunscreen is 100% natural and some items are even vegan. It provides SPF 40, UV protection of 98% and non-toxic! This product line is made on Bonaire and we love supporting our local businesses.
This sunscreen contains a combination of: zinc and titanium, natural oils such as coconut, jojoba, raspberry and almond.
The texture of the sunscreen is a little bit thicker than we are used to. Melt it in the palms of your hands and massage a thin layer into your skin.
It is fragrance free and can be used best for combination to dry facial skin and body.
For acne prone and oily skin, the rich texture can be uncomfortable.
Tropical Nature can be found at the DA Drugstore Bonaire, so make sure to check it out and get your own.
On Bonaire we can find one of the most valuable and precious skin care ingredients - Aloe Vera. It is perfect in after sun skin care. It reduces sunburn and sun damage and rehydrates the skin like no other.
DIY After Sun cream
Ingredients:
½ cucumber
Aloe Vera gel (cut some from the Aloe Vera plant)
Coconut oil
Almond oil
Directions:
Cut the half-cucumber and mix it until pureed
Add 4 tablespoons of Aloe Vera gel
In a bowl, add 6 tablespoons of melted coconut oil
Add 6 tablespoons of almond oil to the coconut oil
Mix together
Leave the mixture to cool in the fridge for maximum refreshment and then apply to the skin. Enjoy making your homemade after sun cream. And don’t forget to follow Tropical Nature Bonaire on Facebook and Instagram to stay up-to-date about their products.
