Doing lots of outdoor activities can indeed cause your skin to look duller. As we all know, ultraviolet radiation (UVR) produced by the sun can cause cell and molecule damage,which leads to skin ageing. Therefore, most of you may use sunscreen before doing outdoor activities. Sunscreen is a cream used to protect the skin from sun exposure to reduce the risk of sunburn to skin cancer.

Not only that, it turns out that using sunscreen can help maintain the performance of your blood vessels. According to research conducted by Pennsylvania State University, the use of sunscreen can maintain blood vessel function by maintaining Nitric Oxide (NO) levels in it. It was previously known that exposure to sunlight could reduce NO levels in blood vessels.

NO is a gas produced in a blood vessel that acts as a vasolidator (dilating blood vessels). NO helps to dilate blood vessels, so that blood flow becomes smooth. The vasolidation process on the skin helps to maintain body temperature. If the body experiences high level of heat, NO as a vasolidator will increase blood flow and remove heat through the skin. In this study, the use of sunscreen before exposure to sunlight was found to maintain NO levels, which made the vasolidation process went well.

To get these results, the researchers observed 13 participants who had light to brown skin tone. The body part used as the object of the research was the arms. One arm was given UVR exposure, while the other became the control. Each participant was asked to run three sessions; UVR exposure only, UVR exposure while using sunscreen, and UVR exposure and sweat.

Text by Anggie Triana
Stock photo from Pixabay

Source(s):

• Science Daily - Sunscreen use can lead to better blood vessel health (2019). https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/04/190407144224.htm, 20 May 2019.
• Medical News Today - Sunscreen may help maintain a healthy blood vessel (2019). https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324906.php,20 May 2019