Daily Use of Sunscreen Slows Down Skin Aging by 24 Percent

Most of us are aware that using sunscreen is important but are confused with the available options, since commercial sunscreen formulas are known to consist of harmful chemicals. However, new research provides reason to remember that it is essential to apply sunscreen before leaving the house.

The study states that daily use of broad spectrum sunscreen slows down the aging process of the skin, as well as helps in preventing skin cancer, according to a news release. It was conducted by researchers at the Queensland Institute of Medical Research.

The FDA approved that sunscreen helps in preventing skin cancer, and this is the first study to show a strong association between sunscreen application and skin aging.

The study was conducted on 900 young and middle-aged men and women. Subjects were mandatorily under the age of 55, to ensure that photo-aging, rather than chronological aging was the cause of skin damage. Participants were asked to regularly use sunscreen for around four and half years. Researchers divided them into two groups, in which the first group was asked to apply SPF15+ sunscreen everyday on their face, neck, hands and arms. Participants of the second group used sunscreen only some of the time, if at all.

Researchers took silicone impressions from the back of the participants' hands at the beginning and end of the study, to note the damage over the study period. After the test period, researchers analyzed the skin of the participants from both groups and compared it with the data they collected before conducting the experiment.

They noticed that those who used sunscreen on a daily basis had no detectable aging of skin, and also had 24 percent less skin aging when compared to those people who used sunscreen just for a limited time. Users of an average age of 39 saw significant results.

"This has been one of those beauty tips you often hear quoted, but for the first time we can back it with science: protecting yourself from skin cancer by using sunscreen regularly has the added bonus of keeping you looking younger. And the study has shown that up to middle age, it's not too late to make a difference," said Professor Adele Green from QIMR.

However, it was seen that those above the age of 55 could not see any successful changes because of chronological aging.

The study is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.