Sunscreen pills

Hanoi In the hot weather, women are looking to buy pills to replace topical creams, but they are lost in a "maze" because of chaotic prices and exaggerated effects.

Linh, 28 years old, in Dong Da, was advised by the seller to buy a sunscreen pill, which promises to "protect against UV rays, prevent skin darkening, dullness, and whiten skin". This person said that the medicine was hand-carried from abroad, so its genuine origin was guaranteed. The product is extracted from pomegranate and green tea, has anti-aging effects, and limits UV rays by up to 98%. The pill also contains calcium, beta-carotene, and vitamins, ensuring that "just taking a sunscreen pill is effective enough, without the need for other supporting methods". A bottle contains 60 pills, take one pill 30 minutes before going out, priced at one million VND per bottle.

Linh said this is a world- famous pharmaceutical brand, the sales staff was introduced by an acquaintance so she trusted and ordered a bottle. After two weeks of taking it, Linh discovered that her skin had small brown patches around her eyes and cheekbones, and her skin was also darker. At first, she thought that the sun was making her skin dull, so she increased her intake of green vegetables and moisturized, but the condition did not improve. The woman stopped taking the pills and went to the doctor, who diagnosed her with skin pigmentation and mild melasma due to not being careful about sun protection.

Also looking to buy sunscreen pills on the advice of a colleague, Ms. Xuan spent 1.4 million VND to buy a product of Spanish origin. On the packaging, the medicine bottle stated the effect "helps improve skin's defense ability, anti-oxidation, dark spots, freckles, brightens overall skin". However, after two weeks of use, she saw that her skin did not change much, even became dry, rough and had acne, so she stopped using it.

According to a survey by VnExpress , sunscreen pills are mainly advertised online or hand-carried from abroad. On many e-commerce platforms, the products are sold everywhere with prices ranging from a few hundred thousand to a few million VND. Most of them cannot be verified for origin, but most stores show that they have a large number of purchases, from a few thousand to tens of thousands of people.

The products are all guaranteed to have benefits, such as being able to replace sunscreen, boost immunity, increase collagen production, help healthy skin, reduce melasma, aging, and acne. The medicine is mainly for women, aged 25 and over, but anyone can order it.

Ms. Xuan ordered a pack of sunscreen pills online, which were introduced as hand-carried goods, for 1.4 million VND. Photo: Provided by the character

Dr. Tran Hanh Vy, Department of Dermatology - Skin Aesthetics, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, said that sunscreen pills contain many skin-protecting ingredients such as vitamins A, B2, D, C, E, which help protect against the sun and nourish healthy skin. Or Polypodium leucotomos - an extract of the fern can reduce sensitivity to sunlight in people with itchy rashes when the skin is exposed to sunlight. Many studies show that fern extract increases the time the skin endures burns when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) rays.

"However, there is no dietary supplement or sunscreen pill that can replace sunscreen," the doctor said.

According to Ms. Vy, these vitamins only work when taken for two to three months. Green tea, lemon, fern, and grape seed extracts can prevent free radical formation, reduce damage, reduce cell proliferation, and limit cancer, but "there is no research proving how much and how long this substance should be used to achieve the above effects". In addition, sunscreen pills do not have an immediate effect and need to be maintained for a long time to create a "barrier" against the harmful effects of environmental factors, especially UV rays.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) also confirmed that sunscreen pills cannot block UV rays from entering the body, and denied the pill's ability to replace sunscreen.

Sharing the same opinion, Dr. Pham Thi Thao, Deputy Head of the Examination Department, Duc Giang General Hospital, said that sunscreen pills do not have the miraculous effects as advertised. Many women mistakenly think that they only need to take one pill, without applying cream, to protect themselves from the sun all day, leading to dark skin, dullness and melasma. In addition, the advertisement of sunscreen pills to treat melasma has not been verified.

"Treating melasma is quite difficult, because the possibility of recurrence is very high, so it needs to be monitored continuously and not depend on oral medication," said the doctor.

On the other hand, ingredients such as lycopene, beta-carotene, vitamin E, and vitamin C in sunscreen pills have the effect of counteracting the harmful effects of UV rays, but not much, only equivalent to sunscreen cream with SPF 15. Some other products may contain glutathione and vitamin C, but the skin whitening effect is a psychological trick and has no long-term effect, Ms. Thao said.

According to doctors, sunscreen pills are not a treatment drug, they are just functional foods so they do not harm health, anyone can take them to help protect the skin. The pills have the effect of supporting the body in sun protection and partly anti-aging from the inside, but must be accompanied by many other protective measures. Buyers also need to choose reputable pharmaceutical companies with clear origins and clearly stated ingredients. Do not put all your trust in advertising and entrust your skin to the products.

Sunscreen pills are sold on e-commerce platforms. Screenshot

To protect the skin, experts recommend that everyone should use topical sunscreen combined with oral pills, especially for people who are vulnerable to sun damage and skin pigmentation. Note to choose sunscreen with the appropriate SPF index. If using sunscreen every day, choose a product with an SPF of 30 or higher. When going to the beach, choose a cream with a sun protection factor of 50 or higher. Do not choose a cream with too high a sunscreen content. The best time to apply sunscreen is about 15-20 minutes before going out and reapply after two hours of use.

Note, sunscreen pills also need to be maintained daily. For example, on days when you are indoors and not exposed to sunlight, you still need to take them to take better care of your skin. When going out, you need to take measures to care for and protect your skin such as wearing a hat, glasses, gloves, and a jacket. Limit being outdoors from 10am to 4pm.

Regularly use mineral spray to soothe the skin and reduce sweat and sebum on the face. At night, you should nourish and clean your face with a suitable cleanser. Use products containing AHA, BHA, retinol to clean pores, reduce acne and acne formation for the skin. Maintain healthy eating habits, drink enough water, eat lots of green vegetables, fruits, fiber combined with exercise and limit stimulants for healthy skin.

Minh An

*Character names have been changed

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