Regarding this issue, Dr. Pham Thi Thao, Deputy Head of the Outpatient Department (Duc Giang General Hospital), shared: Sunscreen pills do not have the miraculous effects advertised, and women need to be very careful. It's not difficult to find sunscreen pills being sold online with attractive offers such as: "Go out in the sun, go to the beach without getting tanned," "sunscreen creams only protect against physical and chemical sun damage, while these pills provide biological sun protection, uniformly protecting against sunlight"... Specifically, many sellers advertise these sunscreen pills as imported goods from the United States, Japan, Germany, etc., with prices ranging from 150,000 VND to 2,500,000 VND per box depending on the type. This advertising is common on e-commerce platforms like Shopee and Lazada.

Illustrative image. Source: VTV

However, advertising sun protection pills with claims of perfect skin protection from the inside out on some websites is not entirely accurate. While sun protection pills help protect the skin from the harmful effects of UV rays, they cannot replace sunscreen. Many women mistakenly believe the advertisements for sun protection pills that claim to provide all-day protection. Because of this belief, many women only take these pills without applying sunscreen, leading to skin darkening and unsatisfactory results.

Furthermore, advertisements claiming that sun protection pills can treat melasma are completely inaccurate. In my opinion, treating melasma is quite difficult because of its high recurrence rate and lack of long-lasting effects. Therefore, melasma treatment must be carried out regularly, continuously, and consistently over the long term. To treat it, women need to visit a doctor to assess the clinical condition of their skin, so that doctors can develop a suitable treatment plan.

Sunscreen pills contain ingredients such as lycopene, beta-carotene, vitamin E, and vitamin C. These substances help protect against the harmful effects of UV rays, but not to a significant extent, only equivalent to sunscreen cream with SPF 15. Some other sunscreen pills may contain glutathione and vitamin C, which have skin-whitening effects. Some sellers exploit this to appeal to women who want both sun protection and skin whitening.

In my opinion, to effectively protect the skin from sunlight and treat sun-related skin conditions, patients should visit medical facilities with dermatology specialists for examination, diagnosis, and appropriate treatment plans. They should also receive advice and guidance from doctors on how to avoid sun exposure effectively, safely, and economically.

Please send your health-related questions to the "Your Doctor" section, Economic -Social-Internal Affairs Editorial Department, People's Army Newspaper, 8 Ly Nam De Street, Hang Ma Ward, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. Email: kinhte@qdnd.vn, kinhtebqd@gmail.com. Telephone: 0243.8456735.