Are ‘Survivor’ Contestants Given Sunscreen? The Basic Supplies Castaways Get During the Competition

Survivor contestants are forced to fend for themselves as they battle the elements in countries like Brazil, Fiji and Samoa for a $1 million cash prize. Fans are curious if castaways are actually self-sufficient and if they’re provided basic supplies like sunscreen.

‘Survivor’ Castaways Have Access to a Box of Medical Supplies

Close to their camp, Survivor contestants have access to a personal box of medical supplies. The supplies are kept “far enough” from their shelter, so viewers never see the box on screen.

“The cameras don’t go there—it’s like your personal space,” Benjamin “Coach” Wade, who appeared on three seasons of Survivor, told Self in May 2024.

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Are ‘Survivor’ Contestants Given Sunscreen?

Some of the products always available are sunscreen and bug spray. Contestants are given a “hybridized product” that offers both bug and sun protection. Benjamin said that the product offered little protection from the sun and didn’t keep bugs from feasting on him during his tenure on the show.

“Every season, you see people with massive bites on their legs,” he explained. “When I slept in Tocantins, I could cover up most of my body, except for my hands—I would put ’em in my pants pocket, and there were two inches where [my skin] wasn’t covered. There’d literally be a hundred bites when I woke up—and that was slathering on the bug and sun.”

How Do ‘Survivor’ Contestants Brush Their Teeth?

Teeth maintenance while on Survivor comes from the same material contestants use to build their shelters. “You take a palm frond, the stem of it or the leaf, and you just get a little thin sliver, and you poke it between your teeth. It’s kind of like floss,” Benjamin told Self, adding that he also tried to brush with “a small stick.”

How Do ‘Survivor’ Contestants Deal With Having Periods?

The show does not supply players with period products, but castaways can bring their own, which are kept in their personal medical supply box at camp. Jess Chong, who got voted out after five days in season 46, explained she got her period on the first day and said it was difficult trying to wash out her clothes in full view of the camera.

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“Those of us who menstruate get to pack whatever we want,” she told Self in May 2024. “I’ve been an ardent Diva Cup user for decades, and I brought both a Diva Cup and tampons so that I could have options.”

Are ‘Survivor’ Contestants Allowed to Take Medication?

Benjamin explained that he was “sometimes” able to take medications. Approved medications were stored in the medical supply box at camp.

“[Production] checks it out, and you turn it in beforehand,” he told Self. However, it did vary over the years. “I had a prescription for allergies, and for some reason, they didn’t let it in the game [the third time]—the first two times, they did.”

However, some medications are seemingly not allowed, even if the substance is taken regularly at home. “They won’t let Ambien or anything like that in there. Or probably Xanax—that’s a big no-no,” he added.