The Protective Role of Astaxanthin for UV-Induced Skin Deterioration in Healthy People—A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial

Abstract

Skin is a major safeguard tissue in humans. Because biological barrier function is deteriorated by several kinds of stresses including exposure to ultra-violet (UV) rays, the protection and treatment of skin conditions by dietary supplements are important. We therefore evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation with an algal food-derived antioxidant, astaxanthin, on UV-induced skin deterioration. Twenty-three healthy Japanese participants were recruited to a 10-week double-blind placebo-controlled study. They were assigned to the astaxanthin group supplemented with a capsule containing 4 mg of astaxanthin or the placebo group. To assess the protective role of astaxanthin for UV-induced skin deterioration, we determined the minimal erythema dose (MED) and analyzed UV-induced changes of moisture and transepidermal water loss (TEWL) at baseline and after 9 weeks of supplementation. Subjective skin conditions were assessed by the visual analog scale. The astaxanthin group showed increased MED compared with placebo. In addition, the astaxanthin group had a reduced loss of skin moisture in the irradiated area compared with placebo. Subjective skin conditions for “improvement of rough skin” and “texture” in non-irradiated areas were significantly improved by astaxanthin. Astaxanthin seems protective against UV-induced skin deterioration and helps maintain healthy skin in healthy people.

Effects of Composite Supplement Containing Collagen Peptide and Ornithine on Skin Conditions and Plasma IGF-1 Levels—A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial

“…Clinicians performed safety evaluation. According to our previous independent trial to evaluate skin TEWL or minimum erythema dose by dietary supplementation of astaxanthin in 10 healthy people [9,59], we set the required sample size as 10. The evaluation of skin elasticity was the primary outcome, while secondary outcome measures included other skin conditions such as skin moisture and TEWL, as well as plasma levels of growth hormone and IGF-1, and safety evaluation.…”

“…Because collagen synthesis decreases with aging, decreased collagen content is one of the major causes of aging-associated changes of skin conditions [6,7]. As skin aging and nutrition states are linked [8], the improvement of skin conditions by dietary supplementation is a topic of increasing public interest [9].…”

Nanoliposome Powder Containing Shrimp Oil Increases Free Flowing Behavior and Storage Stability

“…[ 6 ] Apart from the use of astaxanthin as an anti‐inflammatory, it is also used to treat Ultraviolet (UV)‐induced skin ailments and maintain healthy skin. [ 7 ]…”

Do We Utilize Our Knowledge of the Skin Protective Effects of Carotenoids Enough?

“…We can find lutein and zeaxanthin in leafy green vegetables, pumpkins, and red peppers. Marine food like microalgae, yeast, salmon, trout, krill, shrimp, crayfish, and crustacea are known as sources of astaxanthin, a strong photoprotectant which has been attributed an enormous potential for protecting the organism against a wide range of diseases due to its strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects [35,36,37,38,39,40]. We also need to mention fucoxanthin, another marine carotenoid with remarkable biological properties that is found in the marine macroalgae—brown seaweeds, and the microalgae—diatoms [41].…”