Neutrogena Ultra Sheer SPF 55: Homosalate at 20×, Octocrylene at 10%, BHT in the Base
The full 10% homosalate the EU says is unsafe, 10% octocrylene converting to benzophenone over time, and BHT, the antioxidant the UK restricted in 2024, as an inactive.
Neutrogena Ultra Sheer runs the full US-allowed stack: homosalate 10% (EU SCCS: max safe 0.5%), octocrylene 10% (benzophenone accumulation at the highest concentration in this batch), avobenzone 3%, and octisalate 5%. The inactive list adds BHT, flagged by SCCS for 'concerns related to potential endocrine disrupting properties' and formally restricted in the UK in April 2024. The benzyl alcohol listed in the inactive ingredients is the preservative form and is also an EU-named fragrance allergen. No oxybenzone or octinoxate.
The label, flagged
Avobenzone 3%ACTUALLY FINE
The workhorse UVA filter. It absorbs into skin like the others, but carries no specific harm finding, and it's what's actually protecting you from deep UVA.
active
Homosalate 10%AVOID
The EU's own science panel found it unsafe above 0.5%, every sunscreen here uses it at 9–15%, up to 30× that level. The FDA still allows it.
active
Octisalate 5%ACTUALLY FINE
A mild, low-scrutiny UVB filter that also stabilizes avobenzone. Nothing in the evidence flags it. Cleared.
active
Octocrylene 10%CAUTION
Degrades inside the bottle into benzophenone, a carcinogen with zero allowed level in food and no safe harbor under Prop 65. The longer it sits, the more forms.
active
Water
Styrene/Acrylates Copolymer
Silica
Dimethicone
Potassium Cetyl Phosphate
Benzyl AlcoholCAUTION
A dual-use preservative and fragrance allergen, the EU makes brands name it on the label; here it can hide inside 'Fragrance.'
preservative form
Beeswax
wax base
Caprylyl Methicone
Glyceryl Stearate
PEG-100 Stearate
PEG-derived emulsifier
Cetyl Dimethicone
Caprylyl Glycol
Ethylhexylglycerin
Aluminum Starch Octenylsuccinate
Behenyl Alcohol
Acrylates/Dimethicone Copolymer
Xanthan Gum
Sodium Polyacrylate
Chlorphenesin
Dimethicone PEG-10/15 Crosspolymer
Hydrolyzed Jojoba Esters
FragranceCAUTION
Not a hazard in itself, but a legal black box. “Fragrance” can shield ingredients (including EU-banned ones) that you are never told are there.
Disodium EDTA
Ethylhexyl Stearate
Tocopheryl Acetate
BHTCAUTION
A synthetic antioxidant the EU flagged for possible endocrine effects and the UK restricted in 2024, safe at low levels, watched closely abroad, unrestricted here.
Trideceth-6
PEG-derived emulsifier
Jojoba Esters
Source: DailyMed (NIH/FDA) NDC 69968-0576, revised November 2025. View label. Tap any flagged ingredient for the evidence.
What to use instead
The fix isn’t complicated: a fragrance-free or fully-disclosed alternative, with the ingredients flagged on this label designed out, closes these gaps at once. We pick the ones worth your money.
See cleaner picks →Editorial analysis of the publicly listed label and regulatory/peer-reviewed sources. Not medical advice, not affiliated with the brand. Verdicts are evidence-graded, we flag what the data flags and clear what it clears.