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After 33 years, the Food and Drug Administration today released a new set of rules regulating sunscreen in the United States. Issued just in time for the summer beach season, the new rules dictate that in order to earn a "broad spectrum" designation, sunscreens must protect from both UVB rays, which cause burning, and UVA rays, which cause wrinkles. Both types of ultraviolet rays cause cancer, The New York Times reported. The rules also do away with "waterproof" and "sweatproof" labels on sunscreens, because such claims are impossible. "Instead, they will be allowed to claim that the products are water resistant for either 40 minutes or 80 minutes, depending upon test results, but nothing more."

The rules also say only sunscreens with a sun protection factor higher than 15 can claim to reduce the risk of skin cancer, aging, and sunburn, and that those rated SPF 2 to 14 must be clearly labeled as not doing so. The administration didn't officially weigh in on what The Times called "an SPF arms race," with sunscreen manufacturers rating their products SPF 70 or even 100. In the past it had proposed limiting the SPF rating claim to 50 at the highest.