Dermatologists accuse Nara Smith of promoting skin cancer with latest homemade sunscreen video

By Abby Amoakuh

Published Jul 5, 2024 at 12:55 PM

Reading time: 2 minutes

59467

Nara Smith, née Pellman. Where do we even start? Do we begin with the gourmet meals the model and influencer cooks from scratch while wearing couture fashion? Maybe with her three children who were all birthed before the gentle age of 23, or perhaps with her all-natural and self-made approach to life? But maybe we should just jump straight ahead to her latest controversy which has seen the modern tradwife come under fire for making her own sunscreen. And according to some skincare experts, she might have taken it a step too far with this one…

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by nara (@naraaziza)

In case you didn’t know, Gen Z is the generation that spearheaded a revolution in skincare. We asked the gods to cure our acne, blemishes and dark spots, and they gave us internet prophets in the form of Skincare by Hyram, Mixed Makeup, Caress, and Kemi Fabusiwa.

They taught us the power of niacinamide and hyaluronic acid, introduced us to The Ordinary and The INKEY List, tested all the newest next-gen brands for us, aka Florence by Mills and Kylie Skin, and distilled their knowledge into easily digestible TikToks. Shoutout to our babes.

Above all, however, they taught us the golden rule: one law actually, of always applying sunscreen, like, every single day without exception because it is the most important step of every skincare routine. I’m really not exaggerating here, this was life-changing advice for me, folks.

Sunscreen is sacred in the eyes of the online skincare community. If you mess with sunscreen you might as well be messing with the water supply cause you’re obviously trying to poison us all. However, Smith seems to have not gotten that message cause she recently uploaded a very controversial video in which her husband did indeed share a recipe for self-made sunscreen. Oh boy.

“We’ve been spending a lot of time outside by the pool and I realised that we ran out of sunscreen, but I asked Lucky to make me some,” the mum of three explained in a video shared on 26 June 2024. It has accumulated over 2 million likes and 25,753 comments since.

@naraazizasmith

🤍 #fypツ #easyrecipe #sun #fromscratch #skincare #marriage

♬ Just Give Me One More Day - Alej

The recipe contained coconut oil, beeswax, shea butter, cocoa butter, jojoba oil and zinc oxide powder. You know, very casual, everyday ingredients that everybody has on hand.

“We all burn pretty easily, so we went with something with a little bit more SPF,” Nara said in her voiceover.

Most users admired the couple’s craftiness as always. However, others called attention to sunscreen being a drug, or medical product that shouldn’t be homemade.

“Homemade sunscreen is also homemade melanoma [skin cancer],” one netizen shared. “Y’all are going to FRY this summer with this concoction,” another user warned. “I’m in Greece right now, my mom has been wearing zinc sunscreen and I’ve been wearing regular chemical sunscreen. She looks like a tomato and is covered in blisters and peeling. I’m not even slightly pink.”

A final user wrote: “Yeah, I’ve done some research. I love this girl, but this is not a good idea.”

In a Washington Post column titled A TikToker made sunscreen from scratch. We tried her recipe, US-based dermatologist and fellow at the American Academy of Dermatology Yolanda C. Holmes shared that the only ingredient in the Smiths’ recipe proven to provide any sun protection is the zinc oxide powder.

“These ingredients can be good moisturisers for the skin, but that doesn’t mean they will protect you against the sun. And using it could make you subject to sunburn.” the expert explained.

Holmes reminded readers that “sunscreens should be scientifically tested in labs to make sure they are offering a certain level of sun protection.”

In other words, Smith’s recent video is for the bin. Sorry babes, while you can convince me to make Oreos from scratch and maybe the occasional balm, sunscreen will continue to remain a store purchase.

Keep On Reading

By Abby Amoakuh

Nara Smith’s braids are causing outrage on TikTok. Here’s why

By Abby Amoakuh

Nara Smith addresses Mormon religion as parodies of her lifestyle take over TikTok

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Tradwife influencer Nara Smith accused of stealing content by South African TikToker Onezwa Mbola

By J'Nae Phillips

How Gen Z women are using fashion to say f*ck you to the male gaze

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Tampons contain arsenic, lead, and other toxic metals, study confirms

By Charlie Sawyer

Fight me: Kamala Harris’ Call Her Daddy appearance was more productive than any presidential debate

By Charlie Sawyer

17-year-old Sabrina Carpenter visibly uncomfortable in resurfaced clip featuring sexting questions

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

ShxtsNGigs face major backlash: When will comedians stop targeting Black women for cheap laughs?

By J'Nae Phillips

Cyber nostalgia: How Gen Z-coded Y3K fashion is going to shape the future

By Abby Amoakuh

Political fandoms are ruining democracy. Here’s how we can fix it

By Charlie Sawyer

Has hen do culture gone mad? TikTokers say bridal group chats give them financial anxiety

By Charlie Sawyer

Is Lana Del Rey dating alligator tour guide Jeremy Dufrene to prep for her upcoming country album?

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

Was the alleged assassination attempt on Trump staged? Conspiracy theorists think so

By Charlie Sawyer

Drake’s recent hairstyle has fans thinking he’s going through a midlife crisis 

By Abby Amoakuh

Hot rodent boyfriends are so yesterday. Get ready for the era of hunky beefcakes

By Fatou Ferraro Mboup

A woman in Nigeria is facing three years in prison after reviewing a can of tomato puree

By Abby Amoakuh

Once again, the UK government fails to prioritise free specialist services for sexual violence victims

By Louis Shankar

Friends turns 30 and proves it’s still a cultural icon despite its low key problematic flaws

By Charlie Sawyer

Is JoJo Siwa Polish? Karma singer hints at representing Poland at Eurovision contest in 2025

By Abby Amoakuh

Parents are buying bulletproof backpacks and clipboards for their children as school shootings continue