Many people attach great importance to sun protection in summer because the sun can damage the skin. Ultraviolet rays in the sun stimulate the skin, causing the skin to produce a large amount of peroxide and melanin, making the skin rough, sagging and dull. Sun protection is not only about worrying about getting tanned, but also about preventing premature skin aging.

Tea, a natural plant with a history of thousands of years, has long been a classic ingredient and source of inspiration for major beauty brands, and often appears in various forms in various beauty products.

Because of its pure natural origin and good skin beautifying effects, tea is also favored by people and has become the first choice for skin care and body beauty. So does tea have a sunscreen effect?

Can tea protect you from the sun?

Various studies on the health benefits of tea are constantly being published. A study in the United States pointed out that the catechins in green tea have strong antioxidant functions. After applying skin care products containing green tea ingredients to the skin, even if it is exposed to strong sunlight, it can reduce the peroxides that cause sunburn, sagging and roughness of the skin by about 1/3, so applying tea ingredients does have the effect of sun protection.

There are also scientific research results showing that EGCG in tea has a variety of important physiological activities and pharmacological effects, and has certain effects on sun protection, antioxidant, anti-aging, anti-cancer, anti-cancer, sterilization, and anti-inflammatory. The medicinal and cosmetic functions of tea polyphenols have received widespread attention.

The sun protection and whitening principle of tea polyphenols

1. Block UV rays

Tea polyphenols can block ultraviolet rays, thereby protecting the normal function of melanocytes and inhibiting the abnormal activities of melanocytes.

2. Reduce melanin secretion

Tea polyphenols can inhibit the activities of tyrosinase and catalase, thereby reducing melanin secretion and preventing lipid peroxidation. Therefore, it can effectively reduce the formation of pigments.

3. Inhibit melanin production

The formation process of melanin is an oxidation process. Tea polyphenols, as antioxidants, can reduce melanin intermediates, inhibit the production of melanin, and may directly act on melanin to fade the pigment, thereby whitening the skin.

4. Free radical scavenging

When the body produces excessive free radicals, it can also cause damage to skin cells. First, free radicals decompose the collagen and elastin that support the skin, causing the degradation of the two proteins, causing the skin to lose tension and elasticity, thereby causing wrinkles; second, free radicals cause poor subcutaneous blood microcirculation and hinder the supply of nutrients to skin cells, making facial skin dry and dull.

Tea polyphenols are natural antioxidants that enable the body to have sufficient antioxidant capacity and efficiently remove excess free radicals to promote the oxidative decomposition of lipofuscin that forms brown spots, increase the activity of lysosomal enzymes, and accelerate the degradation of melanin.

5. Whitening effect of vitamin C

Tea contains a large amount of vitamin C. Vitamin C itself has a very good whitening effect, so drinking tea does have the effect of sun protection. In fact, many foods are good for the skin, such as fruits rich in vitamin C, soy products with antioxidant effects, nuts, etc. Tea is just a food that has both.

Although regular drinking of tea is good for the skin and helps with sun protection, the content is too low, and the intensity of ultraviolet rays in summer is too high, so it does not have obvious sun protection function. Therefore, in addition to drinking tea regularly, you should still focus on physical sun protection, apply sunscreen, use a parasol, and try to minimize the time in direct sunlight.

　(Editor: Bonnie)

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