It looks like our ocean isn’t taking kindly to sunscreen. A new report claims that sunscreen is threatening 10% of all corals in the ocean. What is the cause? “The chemicals cause the viruses to replicate until their algae hosts explode, spilling viruses into the surrounding seawater, where they can infect neighboring coral communities.” In effect it is killing the Zooxanthellae, and as we reefers know, coral death is shorter thereafter. Several brands were tested, each with these four chemicals in common: paraben, cinnamate, benzophenone, and a camphor derivative. It is interesting to note that paraben is a common additive to several hundred lotions as well.
