If you cannot apply topical sunscreen often, oral tablets offer a good alternative

Dr Vikas Sharma

In the current season, even on a cloudy day, one most important agent in our armoury for protection of our skin from the ill-effects of UV rays and environmental agents is the powerful sunscreen. Topical sunscreens, as we all know, protect you from the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The two types of UV radiation that you need to protect yourself against are UV-A and UV-B radiation. By creating a barrier that either absorbs or reflects UV radiation before it injures the skin, sunscreen guards against both.

Topical sunscreens have many limitations that culminate into noncompliance or sub-optimal use. People find it much easier to take a pill rather than apply the topical sunscreen every two-three hours.

Oral supplementation aims at countering the long-term effects of sun exposure. Many of these effects are related to immunosuppression, chronic inflammation, and photocarcinogenesis. Oral sunscreen tablets provide the skin with sustenance from the inside out, shielding it from the damaging effects of the sun. They have antioxidants that combat free radicals produced by exposure to the sun. With the aid of these potent antioxidants, which we might not get enough of in our everyday diet, oral sunscreen pills provide uniform protection for the entire body, including sometimes forgotten areas, such as the scalp, eyes, and ears.

All the benefits

• Convenience of use. It is just like taking a supplement. No need for repeated applications like topical sunscreen.
• More uniform photo-protective coverage of the total body surface area and deeper sun protection regardless of factors like the potency of creams, amount applied, sweating, or bathing.
• More broad-spectrum protection against the negative effects of the sun, from the prevention of sunburn to carcinogenic effects and even anti- ageing benefits.
• Excellent safety profile.
• Protection against UV, visible and infrared radiation.
• Excellent antioxidant properties — reduces free radicals by up to 50 per cent.
• Prevents pigmentation caused by UV rays.
• Protects the entire skin surface, increasing the skin’s resistance to sunburn and redness by up to 300 per cent.
• Slows down skin ageing.
• Repairs sun-damaged DNA in skin cells, thus protecting against cancer.
• Protects from sun allergy and premature greying of the hair.

(Sharma is a Chandigarh-based skin specialist)