Sunscreen Chemicals

By Bonnie Jenkins, Advanced Natural Medicine

It’s that time of year again – time for magazines and newspapers to start running their annual advice on sunscreens. And, for the most part, it’s good to protect yourself from the sun’s harmful rays. UV exposure not only prematurely ages your skin, it can also lead to skin cancer.

But this year, researchers from the Outpatient Clinic of Dermatology at Triemli Hospital in Switzerland warn that relying on sunscreen alone may not protect you against the deadliest form of skin cancer.

Fashion Statement

It’s true that numerous studies show that sunscreen helps protect against UV skin damage as well as basal carcinomas and squamous cell carcinoma — two of the three most common skin cancers. But no one has ever conclusively shown that slathering yourself with sunscreen protects against melanoma, the most fatal form of skin cancer.

After conducting a comprehensive review on sun protection strategies, the Triemli group concluded that, instead of just relying on sunscreen, people should wear sun-protective clothing and a hat, and reducing sun exposure to a minimum. In fact, the Swiss researchers believe that these strategies are actually preferable to using sunscreens because most people don’t use sunscreen properly, either not using enough or not re-applying it throughout the day.

Although there are some innovative companies designing clothing that blocks UV radiation, you probably already have something adequate in your closet. The best clothing for sun protection is tightly woven, thick garments made of denim, wool or polyester, not cotton, linen or acetate. And make sure you wash them before wearing. Clothes that have shrunk after washing are denser and better at blocking UV rays than wet, stretched or bleached clothing.

Chemical Protection

There’s another problem with the vast majority of sunscreens on the market today. According to another study conducted at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, many widely used sunscreen chemicals mimic the effects of estrogen and trigger developmental abnormalities in rats. In the study, the Swiss researchers discovered that five of the six common sunscreen chemicals they tested behaved like a strong estrogen in lab tests. These chemicals, which include benzophenone-3, octyl-methoxycinnamate and octyl-dimethyl-PABA, were also found to cause cancer cells to grow more rapidly.

Scientists have also found that sunscreen ingredients actually promote cancer by generating free radical damage. Free radicals are unstable molecules that cause cellular damage by stealing electrons from healthy cells – a process called oxidation. A recent study in the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology found that the recently approved sunscreen ingredient, avobenzone, generates free radicals when exposed to ultraviolet radiation. Two other studies have found that Padimate-O and Parsol 1789 damage DNA when exposed to sunlight.

A shadow is also being cast over micronized titanium dioxide. Recent studies show that, even though titanium dioxide is a natural mineral, the micronized form of the mineral can be absorbed into the body and cause DNA damage. Fortunately, there is a safer way to protect yourself from the sun. Zinc oxide is a natural mineral that, when incorporated into creams and lotions, scatters the sun’s rays away from the skin’s surface. Often paired with antioxidants like green tea, pycnogenol and vitamin E, zinc oxide safely protects against both UVA and UVB rays.

The Sunshine Vitamin

While overexposure to the sun’s rays can bring on wrinkles and sizzling sunburns can lead to skin cancer, you do need some sun every day. Not only is a little sunlight good for your psyche, your body needs some exposure to manufacture vitamin D. Recent studies suggest that vitamin D not only keeps bones and teeth strong, it also plays an important role in protecting against breast, prostate and colon cancer.

But boosting your vitamin D levels doesn’t require basking in the sun. According to Dr. Cedric Garland, Adjunct Professor of Family and Preventative Medicine at the University of California, San Diego’s School of Medicine, just 10 to 15 minutes of exposure per day sans sunscreen will give you all the vitamin D your body needs. But if you already suffer from skin cancer, especially melanoma, it’s wise to get your vitamin D in supplement form.

One Last Thing ...

While four out of five people are concerned about skin cancer, more than half (54 percent) have never been screened for the disease and nearly one quarter (23 percent) never examine their skin for changes to moles and blemishes, according to a recent survey by the American Academy of Dermatology.

To check yourself, inspect your entire body, including your back, scalp, buttocks, soles of the feet, between the toes and the palms of the hands. Use mirrors when necessary. If you notice anything out of the ordinary or see a mole that has changed in appearance, make an appointment to see a dermatologist for a full-body check. Although more than a million new cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed this year, even melanoma is highly treatable when detected early.

This Just In ...

People, middle-aged and older, who take daily zinc supplements may be better able to fight off infections. That’s what Michigan researchers found when they gave a group of 49 healthy men and women aged 55 to 87 either zinc gluconate capsules (45 milligrams of zinc a day) or a placebo. Over the next year, the researchers monitored how often the participants got sick and measured blood levels of zinc as well as several immune system and oxidative stress markers in the blood.

During the study, those taking the zinc supplements came down with significantly fewer infections compared to those taking placebos. After six months, blood tests also showed lower levels of markers for inflammation and oxidative stress – objective indicators of a strong immune system. The researchers conclude that zinc has effective anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that can help reduce infections as people get older. Good news for those of us prone to summer colds and sinus infections!

***

References:

Garland CF, Gorham ED, Mohr SB, et al. “Vitamin D and prevention of breast cancer: pooled analysis.” Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. 2007;103: 708-711.

Lautenschlager S, Wulf HC, Pittelkow MR. “Photoprotection.” The Lancet. Early Online Publication, 3 May 2007.

Prasad AS, Beck FWJ, Bao B, et al. “Zinc supplementation decreases incidence of infections in the elderly: effect of zinc on generation of cytokines and oxidative stress.” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2007 85: 837-844.

Serpone N, Salinaro A, Emeline A, et al. “Deleterious effects of sunscreen titanium dioxide nanoparticles on DNA: efforts to limit DNA damage by particle surface modification.” Proc. SPIE. 2001; 4258: 86-98.