SPF is essential – especially if you’re due to spend a day at the beach, perhaps taking a dip to cool off from the sweltering heat and scorching summer sun. But think twice before you slather on just any old product. While sunscreen is a necessity to protect our skin from powerful and damaging UV rays, the vast majority of sun protectants contain chemicals – namely oxybenzone and octinoxate – that have been damaging the ocean’s ecosystem for decades, particularly the delicate coral reef.

Extensive studies have found that these UV-absorbing compounds, while protecting the humans that wore them, were bleaching coral reefs, disrupting the foundations of vast marine ecosystems. The solution? Avoid oxybenzone and octinoxate and search for mineral sunscreens with non-nanoparticles (smaller nanoparticles can be more harmful to coral reefs). Below, we’ve rounded up a selection of ocean-safe sunscreens that have been consciously formulated with the planet in mind.