Green Tea Preparations Protect Skin From UV Radiation Damage – (04-19-01)



Green Tea Preparations Protect Skin From UV Radiation Damage

This article looks at topically applied green tea extract on UV associated skin damage. It would be interesting to see if oral preparations would have a similar effects. It has been shown previously that Vit C in high doses can raise the minimal erythemic dose (time to develop redness) and potentially protect against sunburn. Remember, a sunburn is basically inflammation caused by oxidative stress produced by the UV rays, and any therapy geared towards lowering inflammation and/or oxidative stress should have a protective effect.

J Am Acad Dermatol 2001;44:425-432 Topically applied extracts from green tea appear to reduce the number of sunburn cells and protect epidermal Langerhans cells from damage caused by ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Dr. Craig A. Elmets, from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and colleagues used extracts from green tea or one of its constituents to treat areas of the skin in six healthy volunteers. Using concentrations of the green tea preparations that ranged from 1% to 10%, the researchers applied the preparations to the backs of their subjects 30 minutes before exposing the treated areas to a “2 minimal erythema dose solar stimulated radiation.” The green tea extracts cause the erythema response to UV radiation to be inhibited, in a dose-dependent manner, the researchers report. The 10% solution offered almost complete protection at 48 and 72 hours, while the 2.5% solution “was found to provide excellent protection, and in some subjects even a 0.5% solution was able to produce a significant reduction in the sunburn response,” Dr. Elmets’ group found. The polyphenolic fractions that were the most efficient at inhibiting erythema were (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate and the (-)-epicatechin-3-gallate, however, there was little effect from (-)-epigallocatechin and (-)-epicatechin, according to the report. In addition, using the green tea extracts also reduced DNA damage, formed after UV radiation. “In an era in which the incidence of the adverse effects of UV radiation is rising at an alarming rate, the introduction of green tea preparations and other natural chemopreventive agents may prove to be a new alternative for protection from exposure to UV radiation,” Dr. Elmets and colleagues conclude.

James Bogash

For more than a decade, Dr. Bogash has stayed current with the medical literature as it relates to physiology, disease prevention and disease management. He uses his knowledge to educate patients, the community and cyberspace on the best way to avoid and / or manage chronic diseases using lifestyle and targeted supplementation.







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Categories: Inflammation, Vitamin C
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