The sunscreen business is a 1.3-billion-dollar business fueled by dermatologic dogma and consumer concerns about the dangers of the sun. According to the market research group Datamonitor Consumer, profits are expected to increase by 6.5 percent by 2017. Much of that growth can be attributed to the development of high SPF products that tend to have a higher price point. A 2007 Environmental Working Group analysis found that more than 1 in 7 products makes claims of SPF values higher than 50+. Not too long ago, SPFs of 30 were considered state of the art, now it’s not unusual to find products touting numbers as high as 70 or more.

While it may seem like sunscreens with higher SPF ratings would provide more benefits, that may not be the case. Using an SPF 80 improves protection over an SPF 30 by a mere 1.75 percent. Even doubling SPF potency will only deliver slightly more protection; an SPF 50 sunscreen blocks 98 percent of sunburn rays while an SPF 100 blocks 99 percent.