Maker of `drinkable sunscreen' to settle case alleging deceptive advertising

An Irvine-based company that marketed and sold a “drinkable sunscreen” has agreed to pay $42,500 to resolve state prosecutors' allegations of deceptive advertising, officials said Wednesday.

Dermatology Industry Inc. marketed and sold a product called UVO, claiming that people who drank it would be protected, head to toe, against the sun's harmful rays for up to five hours. The company stopped selling the product after the state began its investigation, Attorney General Rob Bonta said Wednesday.

“We know that one of the best ways to protect ourselves is to regularly apply sunscreen when we're out in the sun,” Bonta said in a statement.

“We may want a shortcut, but the truth of the matter is: There's no evidence that alternative sunscreen products like UVO's so-called `drinkable sunscreen' provide protection.”

Dermatolgy Industry Inc. did not admit to the allegations, but it accepted the agreement with the state to avoid the time and expense of litigation, according to court documents.

The agreement has yet to be approved by a judge.

Jim Prochnow, an attorney representing Dermatology Industry Inc., declined to comment on the terms of the agreement because it hadn't yet been approved.

As part of the agreement, Dermatology Industry Inc. must provide written notice to the attorney general within 60 days of starting to market or sell any products. But the agreement document also said the company is no longer an operating business.

It was not immediately known how many bottles of UVO had been sold prior to the initiation of the case.