Sunlight gives us our daily dose of vitamin D, but overexposure to its ultraviolet rays can cause photo-ageing, skin cancer and immune suppression.
Sunblocks and sunscreens can provide some protection, but there are concerns about the potentially dangerous ingredients in these products that could outweigh their benefits. Certain chemicals in sunscreens aggravate particular skin conditions, and can clog pores and cause skin allergies.
Sunscreens with natural agents could prove safer and more effective. According to Dr Levite Man, a medical herbalist and founder and principal of the School of Natural Healing in Hong Kong, "Herbs are known to have many anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, cell proliferating, moisturising, photoprotective and wound-healing medicinal properties.
In an article published in June in Alternative and Complementary Therapies, leading American herbalists Eric Yarnell and Kathy Abascal analysed herbal extracts to assess their ability to reduce the negative effects of UV light when taken orally or applied topically.
They found that the extract of golden serpent fern ( Phlebodium aureum) could be used to combat the effects of excessive UV exposure. When the fern was applied on patients with polymorphic light eruptions (itchy rashes caused by UV exposure), 30 per cent of patients were protected from artificial UV light-induced eruptions, and the other patients did not get rashes unless they were exposed to higher amounts of UV light.
In another study, of 57 patients with the light eruptions or solar urticaria (hives) who took golden serpent fern, 74 per cent had less severe photodermatitis.