Hey, there! Log in / Register
Sunscreen dispensers going up in five city parks
By adamg on Thu, 06/25/2015 - 4:58pm
The mayor's office today announced the city is installing sunscreen dispensers at Millennium Park in West Roxbury; Jamaica Pond; Boston Common; Christopher Columbus Park in the North End and East Boston Stadium and Memorial Park.
The dispensers, first proposed by City Councilor Matt O'Malley (Jamaica Plain, West Roxbury), make Boston "the first major city in the Northeast" to offer free sun protection to residents and visitors. The city Parks and Recreation Department teamed up with the Melanoma Foundation of New England and Make Big Change to install the dispensers.
Neighborhoods:
Ad:
Support Universal Hub
Help keep Universal Hub going. If you like what we're up to and want to help out, please consider a (completely non-deductible) contribution.
Comments
Physical or Chemical sunscreen?
I have an extreme sensitivity to chemical sunscreen and get an embarrassing and painful rosacea flareup from it. I hope the sunscreen dispensers have ingredients listed on them so I know if I can use it or not.
While I agree ingredients should be listed,
I'd hope you'd opt out if it's not posted seeing as you know you're sensitive to certain types?
naw
hahaha yeah right, and miss out on a chance to sue the city?
Even if it had physical sunscreen I wouldn't use it
I always carry my own sunscreen because I've already had a couple of bad moles removed and don't want the big M (melanoma).
What is a physical sunscreen?
Do you mean a hat or parasol?
I think...
...it might refer to zinc oxide, which just simply blocks the sun, not chemically, but by covering the skin with something opaque.
Same as "organic" vs "inorganic"
Organic/chemical sunscreen (NB - everything is chemicals and this sunscreen isn't free-range) uses oxybenzone which absorbs into the skin and then uses it's carbon chemical structure to suck up the UV rays instead of your DNA.
Inorganic/physical sunscreen contains zinc oxide or titanium dioxide and lays on top of your skin and uses the metal structure to absorb the UV rays instead of letting it reach your skin.
And just to answer the original question, O'Malley was originally touting organic sunscreen in the dispensers when this was first raised, so I'd expect it to have oxybenzone (most people aren't going to want to use a physical sunscreen from a random dispenser in the park and the idea is to get people to adopt better sunscreen habits overall).
Physicsal sunscreen provides
Physicsal sunscreen provides a broader protection of uva / uvb spectrum than chemical sunscreen. Also, chemical sunscreen contains ingredients that can mess with your hormones. This was explained to me by my dermatologist. Apologies for not articulately explaining it, but google and I'm sure you'll find info online.
You can google how the moon landing is fake too
The evidence that oxybenzone "messes with your hormones" was in limited studies at much higher doses than you would ever expose yourself to internally with just normal usage. Using their levels, you'd have to wear oxybenzone sunscreen at a high concentration for over 40 years daily on your entire skin before you'd build up enough residual oxybenzone in your system to reach the same levels necessary in the tissues where the study was done.
Credible sources online
The Globe article stated that
The Globe article stated that ingredients will be listed.
Fill'er up
Let's see how long it takes for the Parks Department to refill these dispensers once the initial supply is used up. Judging by how often they refill their soap dispensers, I'm guessing they get about a half days worth of use before they sit empty for the rest of the summer.
sunscreen
Sunscreen is gross. Total chemical to be absorbed by your skin into your body. And the city is paying for it?, why? Individuals can't purchase it for themselve's or have the responsibility to cover up? This is brought to us by a fair skinned redhead who has obviously nothing better to do.
bleh
Gross. Can't wait for some nice sun-baked sunscreen from a caked up dispenser.
And why can't I get the phrase 'personal lubricant' out of my head now when I think of these dispensers?
because
you are weird
well
duh! I think this has been well established on here :-)
well
this would be the first thing i've noticed you say that qualifies as such, though i'll be the first to admit that the guy from arlington is the only one that stands out to me all that much here
Six?
You only listed five (since East Boston Stadium and Memorial Park are the same place)
You're right, fixed
Never let me near the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch.
Sunscreen dispenser
Seems to me if the city is so concerned they would put one in Moakley Park (South Boston ) across from Carson Beach.
Sunscreen takes 20 minutes to work
Which is why you're supposed to put it on 20 minutes before going outside. If you're in the sun during those 20 minutes, you can get quite a burn.
Since the city will be paying for these and refilling these (ha!), can they also install doggie waste bags and keep those filled?
...and Sam Yoon never got his
rubber sidewalks. Ginger politics.
Well, there's a reason for that ...
Yoon never proposed rubber sidewalks. You're thinking of Rob Consalvo, who, in recompense, at least got a job with the current administration (as opposed to Yoon, who was basically run out of town on a rail by the previous administration).
I know it's not a real source like the National Enquirer but:
http://www.bostonherald.com/news_opinion/local_politics/2009/02/sam_yoon’s_council_record_thin
Well, I stand corrected!
My apologies; I did not realize Yoon had beaten Consalvo in caving to Big Rubber Sidewalk.
Good idea
This is smart to roll it out in a couple spots to see how much the sunscreen is used. Also glad to see the partnership so the city isn't paying for it. Well done, Councilor O'Malley.
Matt should wear a hat
It is very effective and less messy. Doesn't involve the city at all.