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My Favorite Sunscreen Got Discontinued, So I Went Looking for a Replacement
I’ve been researching truly clean mineral sunscreens for over a year now. I wanted to find one with no microplastics, no petroleum-derived ingredients, and something affordable, ideally under 6 dollars an ounce. That’s a tough list of requirements, since most companies use microplastics in their products.
For a long time, Native’s Unscented Mineral Sunscreen SPF 30 was my answer. Then they reformulated it, lowering the amount of zinc oxide, swapping the coconut-based ingredients for petroleum ones, and adding a microplastic. If you loved the old formula, you can still find some of it on Amazon here. If you want to read more about the old versus the new formulation, check out my post here about how it got discontinued.
So I kept looking, and I found a great face sunscreen from the brand Papatui.
Papatui Facial Moisturizer with SPF 30
This one surprised me. It’s from Papatui, the men’s skincare line owned by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, but the formula works well for anyone. It’s 17 percent zinc oxide, with no microplastics, no petroleum, and no hidden chemical UV filters. It also has ceramides and panthenol in it, which help support the skin barrier and calm any irritation. It costs around 4 dollars an ounce, or about 10 dollars for the 2.5 ounce tube. You can find it on Target here. It’s $10!
Why I Like It
It’s genuinely lightweight, more so than the old Native formula ever was. It blends in easily, without feeling greasy or heavy, and I think it works well for dry, normal, or oily skin.
One more honest note, I’m only vouching for this specific SPF moisturizer. I haven’t gone through every product in the Papatui lineup, and at least one other item I checked does contain a synthetic polymer.
I am excited to look into more of their products. I love that they created a product line that’s affordable and geared towards men. More men should be taking care of their skin! I really appreciate that this product is fragrance-free too.
What About the New Native Formula?
If you’re not as picky as I am, the newly reformulated Native isn’t a disaster. It’s just not what it used to be if avoiding microplastics is your priority. Compared to a lot of the other mineral sunscreens out there, it’s honestly not that bad, it really depends on what you’re looking for.
I’ve stocked up on the old Native formula myself, so I’m set for a while. If I ever do need to reach for the new formulation down the road, I’d use it as a body sunscreen until I can find something even cleaner.
