Another kind of protection pill
There’s new kind of skin protection in the market, and it’s not a sunscreen cream. PRITHA BANNERJEE finds more for you
Being hot takes absolutely another meaning in India during summer season. You maybe at work or home, the blazing sun is always at war with your skin and body. All we can do it drink a lot of water and apply sunscreen. Not to mention repeating the process several times in the day to avoid sun burn and effects from UV rays. Not anymore. There’s an invention which can save a lot of your time and money too. Sunscreen pills have to be taken only once or maximum twice in a day as opposed to creams which are advised to be applied every halfan-hour during the light hours.
How it works
Could it be as easy as just popping a pill? From lotions to spray sticks, we already have a myriad of options to choose from, then why should we opt for pills? Dr Pravin Banodkar, consultant dermatologist from Mumbai, explains, “The components of these pills primarily work through prevention of DNA damage and promotion of DNA repair. It provides protection against the reactive chemical compounds produced inside cells when exposed to ultraviolet radiation. These extracts also help to suppress the inflammatory response to radiation exposure, which is known to contribute to cancer progression.”
They may not be able to replace sunscreen creams completely, but using both will be able to keep the sun from damaging your skin. Sunscreen creams, as we all know from the commercials, help in reducing the amount of damage caused by the UV rays. But living in a tropical country has its own disadvantages. Sweating and tanning is our body’s natural defence against the sun’s ultraviolet rays. Creams melt away pretty quickly – it is practically impossible to re-apply after every 30 minutes break as directed – and repeated exposure to UV rays can do more damage to the skin.
“Excessive sun exposure can cause redness, burning, peeling of skin and pigmentation as an immediate reaction. Cumulative sun exposure over months and years, even in moderate amounts can cause wrinkles, sagging, stubborn pigmentation, spots (called as lentigenes) and very rarely skin cancers,” claims Dr Rickson Pereira, consultant dermatologist.
Research suggests these pills are more effective in preventing sunburn. “And, they don’t have similar components”, says, Dr Kiran Lohia, skin specialist. “Typically, the pill consists of heavy antioxidants and/or vitamins whereas the cream contains chemical or mineral
agents that either block or absorb UV rays.”
Healthier option
The pills usually contain vitamins and antioxidants that we may not get enough of in our day-to-day diet and they help protect our bodies against many other things. Dr Geetika Mittal Gupta, Founder and Medical Director at International Skin & Anti Ageing Centre (ISAAC), says, “Other than preventing the damage caused by excessive sun exposure, it is also helpful in ameliorating certain skin conditions. The high percentage of antioxidant phenol has been shown to protect skin from erythema by inhibiting the formation of free radicals from UV radiation. It has also been shown to help prevent sunburn and reduce the reddening of skin that can occur with sun exposure.”
Some pills additionally provide antioxidants, anti-ageing, immunological and DNA production. “They protect the skin against not only UVA and UVB, but also visible and infrared radiations. Using sunscreen creams along with oral photo-protection is ideal for country like ours,” says Kalpesh Gawade Director, Skinnovation, who created Heliocare pill, a development of Fernblock technology.
Our skin is hungry for antioxidants and, whether topically applied or eaten, they reinforce skin’s reservoir of these natural defenders against environmental assault. “It reduces skin damage caused by UV rays, repairs damages caused to the DNA and depresses the skin immune system,” says Dr Rickson. In other words, these pills not just works as sun protection but it gives the skin what it needs to protect itself from the UV rays.
Other concerns
When it comes to something new and unusual, people will be concerned about its negative effects. But, the skin specialists give sunscreen pills a thumps up, “The natural supplements like beta carotene polypodium leucotomos and nicotinamide do not have any side effects,”
Kalpesh Gawade — Director, Skinnovation
says Dr Banodkar. These pills can be taken daily twice a day. It should be taken even when you are not exposed to sunlight directly and they work long term on the skin to improve the overall health of the skin and sun protection. However, they are just vitamins for skin care lovers.
Although these magical pills sound too good to be true, the consequences of unprotected exposure to UV lights can be severe. Physical barriers like creams and lotions have demonstrated to reduce its effect when the exposure is acute and chronic. However, they are just an extra protection. Most of the sunscreen creams offer SPF 15 or more whereas, these pills might have insufficient SPF that is ideally needed. So they will work effectively only when used with sunscreen creams. Carrying an extra protection does not harm, does it?
When asked about the negative effect of these pills for children, Dr Banodkar claims, “Long-term treatment with polypodium leucotomos extract has benefits for children and adolescents with a topic dermatitis who require pharmacologic treatment to reduce inflammation and relieve itching. Hence, it can be safely used for children even for photo protection.”
One might also need regular eye check-up, “The prescription product like hydroxychloroquine can have side effects related to the eyes on prolonged intake and eye check-up once a year is mandatory when one is taking this drug for certain sunlight sensitive skin diseases,” adds Dr Banodkar.
They protect the skin against not only UVA and UVB, but also visible and infrared radiations. Using sunscreen creams along with oral photo-protection is ideal for country like ours.