ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Depleted zinc oxide

Okay kiddo, so you know how sometimes when you play with your toys, they can break and get worn out over time? Well, the same thing can happen with materials in the world around us, like minerals.

One mineral called zinc oxide is often used in things like sunscreen, deodorant, and even the rubber in car tires! But when we use up a lot of the zinc oxide in these products, we say that it becomes depleted.

This means that there isn't as much of it left to use in making these things, which can be a problem because it's very useful and important. Luckily, scientists are always working on finding new ways to get more zinc oxide so we can keep using it for all the things we need it for.