ABSTRACT
The development of materials that substantially diminish the amount of UV radiation
delivered to skin has been to date the primary strategy for sun protection. Thus the use of
clothing, shade, and topical sunscreen products containing both organic/chemical and
inorganic/physical UV filters are principal strategies for avoiding both the short-and
long-terms effects of UV damage. No matter how effective a UV filter is, however, some
radiation is still going to damage targets in the skin either directly, such as DNA damage,
or indirectly, such as oxidative damage to vital cellular components. Recent work has
pointed out two new strategies for overcoming the practical limitations of UV filter-based
sunscreens (1). One involves the use of potent antioxidants to limit the amount of cellular
damage induced primarily by reactive oxygen species and the other involves helping the
skin to more effectively and quickly repair the UV damage to DNA. This chapter will
review the progress made recently in incorporating active ingredients into topical
products that effectively boost overall protection against UV radiation and help repair the
primary DNA damage.
