Antioxidant Mixture May Improve Protection Against Skin Cancer

Newswise — Despite the availability of topical sunscreens, skin cancer is on the rise. A group of chemists at University of Scranton in Pennsylvania says that adding a mixture of antioxidants to sunscreen may help enhance its protection. In animal studies, they found that a mixture of various topical antioxidants was more effective than single antioxidants in preventing the formation of skin tumors induced by ultraviolet light.

In another study, the same research team found that black tea, green tea, grape seed and cranberry extracts were all promising antioxidants for fighting skin cancer when applied topically. Both studies were presented at the 229th national meeting of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society, in San Diego on March 14.

The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization, chartered by the U.S. Congress, with a multidisciplinary membership of more than 158,000 chemists and chemical engineers. It publishes numerous scientific journals and databases, convenes major research conferences and provides educational, science policy and career programs in chemistry. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.