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lycopene, methylation, uvb phototherapy
I was reading https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25830654/, "Correlation between Reversal of DNA Methylation and Clinical Symptoms in Psoriatic Epidermis Following Narrow-Band UVB Phototherapy" and wondered if it might not make sense to try to replicate the uvb phototherapy benefits by finding a sun blocker for UVA only and just getting uvb from the sun. After a lot of looking, one promising cheap source emerged but it's a little weird: lycopene. One of the best natural sources? Tomato paste. Also has vitamin A and C.
Kind of curious whether lying in the sun covered in tomato paste might be beneficial to skin health / health generally, as silly as it sounds?
Comments
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I'm not sure if "cheap" or "expensive" should be brought into the equation, things can be cheap and high quality, things can be expensive and low quality the details aren't necessarily in the price of a solution but the research behind that solution and the quality of the product. Playing with UV is very risky even if your skin is covered in some protective coating, albino people for example have to wear the highest SPF factor through the majority of their outdoor life and even on sunny winter days. Also did you contact the NIH to be sure that source of information is actually reputable? It's best to not take research studies at face value especially when they involve the skin.
Anyway, Lycopene, belonging to the carotenoids, is a tetraterpene compound abundantly found in tomato and tomato-based products. It is fundamentally recognized as a potent antioxidant and a non-pro-vitamin A carotenoid. Antioxidants help prevent and undo damage to collagen in the skin. Lycopene specifically helps prevent skin discoloration, texture changes, and fine lines and wrinkles so it will be beneficial to your skin without being used in phototherapy.
Please stay safe, do not rely on UV treatments.
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nods i was thinking of merely laying in the sun outdoors - kinda wondering how much was the minimum exposure of sunlight to get some methylation reversal. lycopene filters UVA light. So the intensity wouldn't be that high. I'm not sure how much benefit it would be. but I'd rather have uva than b I think (although both can cause damage if too much, obvs.) I know consumption of carotenoids (including lycopene) also provides some sun-protective qualities.
