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- After searching for an affordable, safe, everyday face sunscreen for months, I've settled on Farmacy's cult-favorite Green Defense ($36).
- It's SPF 30, a mineral formula, hails from a farm-to-face skin-care brand, and protects my skin from sun damage and environmental aggressors.
- According to dermatologists, mineral sunscreen (rather than chemical sunscreen) is a better option for people with acne-prone skin. And, unlike most face sunscreens I've tried, this didn't result in clogged pores and breakouts.
As a pale, freckled 20-something raised in long-sleeve sun shirts and bucket hats, I inherited the preoccupation with sun damage that my parents' generation cultivated out of penance for a bygone time when "nobody knew how bad the sun was."
Aside from this conditioning, a combination of personal sunburns and dermatologist visits scared me straight. While the jury may still be out on how best to get vitamin D, the American Academy of Dermatology takes a zero-tolerance stance on sun exposure. And if you spliced every dermatologist visit I've had together, it would be one long movie montage of people saying to wear sunscreen every single day - even when there are clouds.
I heeded their advice. To avoid the pitfalls of incremental sun exposure (skin cancer, wrinkles, age spots, a blotchy complexion, and loose skin), I adopted a good mineral body sunscreen. But it took me much longer to find an everyday face sunscreen that checked all the boxes: lightweight, affordable, okay under makeup, a mineral formula, and nothing that caused acne.
Why Farmacy's Green Defense SPF 30 is great
After a summer of testing various options, I've committed to Farmacy's Green Defense Daily Mineral Sunscreen ($36). It's a broad-spectrum SPF 30 mineral sunscreen that's non-greasy, easy to layer under makeup, is designated as "clean," and has never caused my acne-prone skin to break out - despite daily applications.
If you're concerned about reports that chemicals in sunscreen seep into your bloodstream, mineral formulas are a good alternative. Most mineral sunscreens, including this one, use a combination of Titanium dioxide and zinc oxide that sit on the skin's surface to block harmful UV rays. Farmacy pairs that with natural antioxidants (marigold and black chokeberry extracts) that help defend the skin against pollution and the blue light emitted by devices like smartphones and computers.
I apply a small amount of Green Defense in the morning after my moisturizer has sunk into my skin, and shortly after (the company recommends 15 minutes), I head out the door. If I decide to wear makeup, I layer it on top of this sunscreen. On its own or layered underneath tinted moisturizer or foundation, it's surprisingly good at blending in; it doesn't make me look greasy or shiny, leaves no white cast, and my makeup doesn't slide around.
Ideally, this would not cost $36 - but, it's a pretty standard price for most mineral sunscreens that aren't drugstore options, and it will easily last me months of regular daily use.
The one con I would note is that, with a mineral sunscreen, even a lightweight formula will leave some film on top of your skin - it has to since its key ingredients form a protective layer like a mask. What I like about Green Defense is that it's a forgettable layer. I don't notice it until I start rubbing my skin. However, it does make me look forward to washing my face at the end of the day.
Bottom line
All in all, if you're looking for a lightweight, non-greasy mineral sunscreen that won't clog your pores and can be worn under makeup, I highly recommend checking this one out.
Farmacy Green Defense SPF 30 Daily Mineral Sunscreen, $36, available at Farmacy and Sephora
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