The FDA has approved bemotrizinol, known as BEMT, as a sunscreen filter for use in the US, the first new UV filter approval in the country in 20 years, according to Who What Wear. The organic filter was developed in Switzerland in the 1990s and first appeared in European Union sunscreens in 2000, and has long been a staple in La Roche-Posay's international formulas, according to Stephen Lynch, associate vice president of skincare development and scientific valorization at L'Oréal Research and Innovation North America.
Lynch said BEMT absorbs light across both the UVA and UVB spectrum, including the short-UVA range, but stressed that a sunscreen's overall performance depends on how filters are combined and formulated rather than any single ingredient. He said BEMT isn't necessarily better than mineral filters, but gives formulators "another option," particularly for people with darker skin tones who want to avoid the white cast common with mineral sunscreens.