Popular sunscreen products that come in mousse form, such as Supergoop!’s body mousse, may not protect wearers from the sun’s harmful UV rays, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning.
“Beware of sunscreen products in mousse form because they might not be effective,” the FDA said in a post on X after issuing five warning letters to companies that make these types of sunscreens.
Additionally, the products can pose a risk to consumers because they are packaged to resemble whipped cream containers, which raises the risk that someone could mistake them for food and ingest them, the FDA said.
One warning letter was sent to Vacation Inc., a personal care startup that makes what the company calls “Classic Whip Sunscreens,” which it markets as “dessert for your skin.”
The products are classified as drugs because they are designed to, and marketed as, products that can help prevent sunburn and decrease the risk of skin cancer, the FDA notes. While they are sold as over-the-counter drugs, they have not received the required FDA approval, according to the agency’s letter.
“There are no FDA-approved applications in effect for your drug products,” the letter states.
The products are also “misbranded” as they are packaged in containers that resemble food canisters, according to the FDA.
“Packaging drug products in containers that resemble food containers commonly used by adults and children can mislead consumers into mistaking the products for food, which is of particular concern as this increases the risk of accidental ingestion,” the letter reads.
Vacation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Supergoop!, a popular personal care company, also received an FDA warning letter, which informs companies that they have 15 days to address any violations the agency has identified.
Supergoop! told CBS MoneyWatch that it is committed to maintaining “the highest standards of product efficacy and safety,” and that it’s working to resolve what it called a “product labeling” matter with the FDA.
Supergoop!’s “Play SPF 50 Body Mousse” sunscreen product, also an over-the-counter drug product, lacks FDA approval and violates marketing regulations, according to the letter.
Other companies that make mousse sunscreen products, and which received FDA warning letters, include Kalani Sunwear, Botao Baby and Tizo Skin, which also make mousse sunscreen products. Kalani Sunwear said that while it stands by the “safety, efficacy, and quality” of its product, it has temporarily pulled its mousse-format sunscreen from its U.S. website “to ensure full compliance with the regulations.”
Botao Baby and Tizo Skin did not immediately respond to CBS News’ inquiry about the FDA’s warnings.
