Quick Summary:
Date Tested: 07/29/2022
So I caught the Convid last week when going out for drinks with my friend. We hit up two bars and I took two Ubers. Somewhere along that trail of booze, food, and intermixing of droplets, I sucked up some Covid. Yes, I am fully vaccinated and even got my Moderna bi-valent booster (unfortunately I ended up testing positive the same day). What they say about this Covid induced brain fog is real. I feel like I’ve had a hangover from a heavy night of drinking…but for a week now. It is only day 7 since testing positive, so hopefully this brain cloud goes away soon enough.
Despite not feeling like resuming my one sunscreen a day type of posting, I did feel the need to do at least one for the week. So I bring you this Alba Sweet Pea sunscreen lotion article. No Frills, despite this being a very very very effective sunscreen product.
Full disclosure: This Alba Botanica Sheer Shield Sweet Pea SPF 45 Sunscreen review is sampled from before the packaging refresh (which this article uses for its featured image). When I took a sample, the product package looked like the image below:
The sunscreen tube has now been updated to look like the image further down in this post. Everything regarding active and inactive ingredients after the packaging update remain identical to the previous version, so I have no reason to believe they changed the formula.
The Alba Botanica Sheer Shield SPF 45 sunscreen lotion is a chemical based formulation which contains Avobenzone 3%, Homosalate 10%, Octisalate 5%, and Octocrylene 10%. The marketing benefits claim it is cruelty free, gluten free, and is a plant based lotion.
With such a high percentage of chemical UV filters added to the formulation, the Alba Botanica Sheer Shield performed quite well by cutting UVI by 99.87%, reducing UVA by 99.93%, and filtering UVB by 98.49%. Excellent results!
Alba Botanica Sheer Shield SPF 45 Sunscreen ingredients
Active ingredients: Avobenzone 3.0 %, Homosalate 10.0 %, Octisalate 5.0 %, Octocrylene 10.0 %
Inactive Ingredients:
Water (Aqua), Cetyl Alcohol, Glycerin, Glyceryl Stearate SE, Dimethicone, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, VP/Hexadecene Copolymer, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Oil, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice(1), Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract(1), Camellia Sinensis Leaf Extract(1), Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract *, Ginkgo Biloba Leaf Extract, Lathyrus Odoratus Flower Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower/Leaf/Stem Extract(1), Tocopheryl Acetate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetearyl Olivate, Citric Acid, Linalyl Acetate, Polysorbate 60, Sodium Chloride, Sodium Stearoyl Glutamate, Sorbitan Olivate, Squalane, Triethyl Citrate, Xanthan Gum, Alcohol(1), Benzyl Alcohol, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate, Amyl Cinnamal, Geraniol, Hydroxycitronellal, Limonene, Linalool. (1)Certified Organic Ingredient
Manufacturers Website: www.albabotanica.com
Alba Botanica Sweet Pea Sheer Shield SPF 45 Sweet Pea characteristics at a glance:
- broad spectrum protection
- water resistant (up to 80 minutes)
- biodegradable formula
- certified by the Gluten-Free Certification Organization
- free of oxybenzone, octinoxate, PABA and Vitamin A
- no parabens, phthalates or sulfates
- no artificial colors or synthetic fragrances
- Viscosity is thicker
Prepared slide ready for testing
The Alba Botanica Sweet Pea SPF 45 looked a little strange when prepared on the microscope slide, a little thick and somewhat globby.
Below are the results from 2 hours of testing in my UV testing station.
Alba Botanica Sweet Pea Sheer Shield SPF 45 UV blocking test results
Ultraviolet light quick reference:
UVA: The Ultraviolet wavelength from 315nm – 400nm. The “Aging UV light” – Causes wrinkles.
UVB: The Ultraviolet wavelength from 280nm – 315nm. The “Bad UV light” – Causes skin cancer.
UVI: The global sun UV index. The more a sunscreen can reduce the level of UVI, the better.
UV test results:
Ultraviolet sensor readings:
| Before Sunscreen | After Sunscreen | % UV Blocked | |
| TEMP | 83.03 | 82.9 | |
| UVA | 25621 | 17.75 | 99.93% |
| UVB | 1274 | 19.25 | 98.49% |
| UVI | 15.0 | .02 | 99.87% |
Want to know more about how I test sunscreen? Head here to read about the details.
Testing notes:
I’ve since come to regard the Alba Botanica brand as offering sunscreen lotion which prove to be very effective at blocking ultraviolet rays. They rank up there with the highest performers and I would really not hesitate to use their products should I need to quickly choose a sunscreen for me and my family. This particular sunscreen lotion hits most of the right marketing points I am looking for, except not being reef safe. However, I do highly recommend it for its UV blocking ability.
Want to try the Alba Botanica Sheer Shield Sweet Pea SPF 45 Sunscreen?
Seems a bit thicker, but offers fantastic protection against UV. Recommended
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