With the arrival of warmer weather across Spain, pharmacy shelves are overflowing with sunscreen, but this year the controversy is playing out on our mobile phone screens. What was once basic health advice has become a subject of debate due to a wave of misinformation spreading like wildfire on digital platforms, making many think twice before slathering on sunscreen to go to the beach. In our country, the data is quite worrying: it is estimated that nearly 95% of young people say they have heard Misleading or outright false claims about the sun and skin cancer, a media noise that is deeply affecting new generations.
The epicenter of this storm is primarily on TikTok, where the algorithm seems to have a particular fondness for content that sparks controversy or goes against the grain. It's not that there's a lack of accurate information, since the vast majority of videos (almost 87%) recommend the use of sunscreen, but the problem is that content spouting nonsense is what ends up getting all the likes and shares. Researchers at the University of Alberta have quantified this phenomenon, finding that this narrow margin of Videos criticizing sunscreens It achieves a disproportionately high audience engagement compared to sensible advice from dermatologists.
The algorithm rewards controversy over scientific rigor
The research analyzed nearly a thousand videos under the most popular hashtags in the industry, and the conclusion is clear: provocative content sells more. While most creators focus on the aesthetic benefits of preventing blemishes or wrinkles, those who opt for alarmism easily make their posts go viral. This social media interaction gap This poses a real risk, since repeated exposure to these ideas ends up normalizing theories that lack any kind of scientific basis and that can endanger the health of younger users.
Among the most repeated myths, experts identify two main groups. On the one hand, there are those who say that sunscreen deprives us of the benefits of the sun, such as the well-known vitamin D, and on the other, those who claim that the product itself is toxic or even carcinogenic. The reality, as confirmed by the medical community, is that regular use of sunscreen is beneficial. reduces the risk of melanoma by 50%, and that vitamin D levels are not significantly affected by the use of these products in daily life. Furthermore, theories such as the so-called 'sun callus,' which proposes training the skin by exposing it without protection, are truly reckless, since UV radiation damage is cumulative and cannot be counteracted by any kind of training.
Myths about toxicity and blocking natural benefits
Another myth that has recently gained traction concerns the presence of harmful substances in the containers. It has even been claimed that the creams can disrupt hormones or contaminate breast milk, based on isolated manufacturing problems in specific batches that have nothing to do with the overall safety of the product. It is crucial to understand that quality controls in Europe are strict and that Benzene is not an ingredient not inherent to the formulas, but an external contaminant that was detected in isolated cases and has already been removed from the market.
What truly worries public health professionals is that a golden opportunity for education is being missed. In most of the viral TikTok videos that do recommend using the cream, there's barely any mention of its primary function being to prevent serious illnesses; almost the entire discourse revolves around... Posturing and cosmetic benefitsWhile taking care of oneself to avoid premature aging is excellent, we shouldn't forget that what's at stake is preventing complicated diagnoses in the future. Therefore, we urge platforms to better moderate this content so that the algorithm doesn't systematically reward falsehoods simply because they generate more comments or outrage.
The fight against skin misinformation requires that both authorities and users themselves be more critical of what we see in the endless scroll. It's not enough for experts to communicate better; social media platforms also need to stop fueling conspiracy theories that triple the impact of scientific evidence. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is... It has been proven that the sun burns And that sun protection remains our best bet to enjoy the summer without surprises, no matter how much a fifteen-second video tries to convince us otherwise with arguments of dubious origin.