Patients need vitamin D which is normally produced in the skin in response to ultraviolet light from the sun. Vitamin D is important for calcium absorption and good bone health. Physicians have been using sunscreens to protect patients from skin cancer and the aging effects of sunlight for a least a half a century. Dermatologists have promoted sunscreen use to restrict sunlight exposure especially in white Caucasians. If this behavior is done 100% of the time when outdoors individuals may suffer from vitamin D deficiency. It is impossible to influence persons' behavior to wear sunscreens all the time when outdoors. With the use of sunless tanning agent (DHA), once a week, we can obtain a continuous sunscreen in the top layer of the skin that will not wash off, can't be removed with soap and water, or removed by perspiration. Under these circumstances we can answer the scientific question, will sunscreen use inhibit the production of vitamin D in the skin?
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
50
using 3% DHA twice a week for the 1st week and then once a week for 4 weeks and receiving 40mJ UV-B phototherapy three times a week for four weeks
receiving 40mJ UV-B phototherapy three times a week for four weeks
Creighton University
Omaha, Nebraska, United States
To measure the response of 25(OH)D to 40 milliJoules of UV-B light in white Caucasians with melanoidins-sunscreen from 3% DHA in comparison to the response of control subjects who have not used 3% DHA.
Time frame: 1 month
This platform is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional.