Most Australian kids have dangerously high levels of a potentially hormone-disrupting chemical used in sunscreen, according to a new study which recommends stricter regulations.
German researchers found that 80% of children had homosalate levels high enough for some health effects are expected but for which no action was required, and 53% had levels at which adverse health effects are possible and there is an “acute need for exposure reduction”.
Another 23% of children were at risk of adverse health effects due to high levels of a second UV filter, 2-ethylhexyl salicylate, the study found.
The study, which was published in the American Chemical Society’s Environmental Science & Technology journal last week, examined urine samples from 18,700 people in Australia, collected between 2012 and 2023.
The authors noted that since the sample skewed heavily toward Queensland it might not be representative of the whole country, but stated that “comparable exposures are likely for the entire population”.
According to the study, exposure to homosalate occurs mainly through the skin, but also via “lip-care” sunscreen products, hand to mouth contact, or from eating food with bare hands after applying sunscreen, and noted oral exposure was especially likely for children.
The researchers noted that Australian children had UV filter levels twice as high as their German counterparts, which suggested a “high compliance with sunscreen regulations”.
The authors noted the Australian population was “particularly at risk” of skin cancer, and sunscreen played a “vital role in reducing UV radiation exposure”, but said regulators should step in to reduce homosalate exposure.
“We see need for action not only to directly mitigate potential health risks from homosalate exposure, but also to prevent loss of confidence in the safety of sunscreen products, which could have disastrous consequences by leading to ineffective sun protection behaviour,” the researchers concluded.
“Therefore, the maximum permitted concentration of homosalate in sunscreens should be regulated more strictly, potentially with a focus on products intended for children.
“Stricter regulations of homosalate use are already in effect in the European Union and ASEAN and have been proposed by the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration and the Australian Industrial Chemicals Introduction Scheme.”
The TGA recommended stricter regulations for homosalate in December 2024, and again in July 2025.
The European Commission’s Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) found in 2021 that homosalate can have estrogenic and anti-androgenic effects, but that there was insufficient data to “conclusively regard it as an endocrine disrupting substance”.
“On the basis of safety assessment of homosalate, and considering the concerns related to potential endocrine disrupting properties, the SCCS has concluded that homosalate is not safe when used as a UV-filter in cosmetic products at concentrations of up to 10%,” the SCCS stated at the time.
That level has since been set at a maximum of 7.34% for face products sold in the European Union, while in Australia it is 15%.
The study comes after 20 sunscreens were recalled in December last year when testing found they did not offer the sun protection factor levels they claimed.
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