Babo Botanicals sunscreen is made with natural ingredients, non-nano, reef safe and hypoallergenic. The mineral sunscreen uses zinc oxide as the active ingredient and specifically designed for those with sensitive skin. This post includes my Babo Botanicals Clear Zinc Sunscreen Review.
Babo Botanicals has a score of 2 by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) and provides UVA/UVB protection and is water/sweat resistant for up to 80 minutes. It is non-nano meaning the particles are too large to penetrate the skin. Mineral sunscreens work by offering a physical barrier between the sun and our skin.
What is Clear Zinc Sunscreen?
Clear zinc sunscreen is all the rage right now. After years of dealing with the white cast of mineral sunscreens, I, for one, was pumped to try some of the clear zinc sunscreen options.
When the clear sunscreens hit the market two summers ago, I had already bought several high-quality sunscreens from Badger and Think, so I resisted the urge to try the clear zinc sunscreen immediately.
The first one I tried was the Babo Clear Zinc Sport Sunscreen Stick, and it was a success. The stick option is perfect for little ears and noses. It lasted me a summer and a half on two kiddos, which isn’t bad ROI either.
To see which mineral sunscreens made the cut in past years, see my related post, EWG Approved Sunscreen List. These are all still great non-toxic sunscreen options, but most of them do leave behind a little white residue.
After checking the EWG ratings and reading lots of reviews, I decided to try Babo Botanicals Clear Zinc Lotion. The first thing I noticed about Babo Clear Zinc Lotion is the container size. Let me just warn you, if you have fair skin, it’s going to be an expensive summer if you go for clear zinc ;).
You will definitely pay more for mineral sunscreen in general and you will pay even more for clear zinc sunscreen compared to standard zinc sunscreen. That being said, my budget plan is to use all of my mineral sunscreens left over from last year on my kiddos (8 and 11) who honestly could care less about a little residue and switch to clear zinc sunscreen on myself.
I’m super excited about the idea of not having white residue on my blank tankini this year!
Is Clear Zinc Sunscreen Really Clear?
Well, you can see for yourself. I took a video of my son applying the Babo, so you can take a look. This sunscreen goes on much smoother than any mineral sunscreen I have ever owned!
My son has tan skin, and it blended right in without any white cast. Did I mention I will not miss the white cast ;)? The Feel is light weight and non-greasy with no noticeable scent. I am a fan!
How Do They Make Zinc Oxide Clear?
I was curious about this too. What is the process? Is the process safe? Does it make the sunscreen less effective? My brain likes to ask all the questions! Badger, one of my other favorite sunscreen brands, has all of the details about clear zinc oxide their website.
Does Clear Zinc Sunscreen Work?
From what I have read, there is no reason to believe that clear zinc sunscreen is any less effective than regular zinc sunscreen. Since some zinc sunscreen can be thick and tough to spread, the biggest challenge is usually just getting it on all of your exposed skin.
I have worn my Babo sunscreen in direct sun for an entire summer now and so far, so good!
Is Babo Sunscreen Organic?
No, Babo sunscreen is not organic, but it is made with natural ingredients, non-nano, reef safe and hypoallergenic. It has an EWG rating of 2, which is quite good for a sunscreen.
Other Great Clear Zinc Sunscreens
There are several others on the market, but the only other one that’s on the EWG nice list is ThinkSport Active Clear Zinc Sunscreen, which has mixed reviews on Amazon. The biggest complaint is that the formula separates. Many customers were fine with this and simply knew to shake well before each use.
Other customers thought the sunscreen was old or defective in some way. I have only owned my Babo Suncreen for a few days, but so far, I have not noticed any signs of separation.
The EWG usually runs behind on product recommendations, because their evaluation process takes time, so I suspect more clear zinc sunscreens will earn their recommendation before summer is over. Ethical Zinc Mineral Sunscreen, an Australian brand, looks like a promising option.
Ethical Zinc uses zinc oxide certified by ECOCert. The brand is cruelty free, reef safe, hypoallergenic and, to top it off, they use solar energy to run their facility.
My Babo Clear Zinc Sunscreen Review
I think Babo Clear Zinc Sunscreen is an excellent choice for safe, non-toxic sunscreen for babies, kids and adults. I love that it’s more affordable than most other clean clear zinc sunscreens.
It seems to offer adequate protection from the sun and there is minimal to no noticeable white cast on fair or tan skin. It spreads easily, there is no separation of ingredients thus far and no strong smell, which I appreciate as I am sensitive to scents.
As of now, it seems like one of the best, safest options for zinc oxide sunscreen and one of the only EWG-verified clear zinc sunscreens. I hope you had a few takeaways from this Baby Clear Zinc Sunscreen Review.
