A look at current trend drivers

COSSMA: Could you please tell us more about what you see as the most important trends in the field of sun care today?

Juergen Vollhardt (JV), Photo Protection Science & Promotion, DSM: Three factors are currently driving sun care trends. Firstly, there is the issue of consumer perceptions and use of sunscreen products. Awareness of the damage that the sun can cause to skin has increased, but sunscreen uptake is still quite poor. At our company, we have carried out our own consumer insights studies, as we really want to understand why this is and develop appropriate solutions in response. Our most recent survey of 5,600 consumers in eight countries (China, Korea, Germany, UK, France, US, Brazil, Australia) revealed that 26% of people interviewed do not apply sunscreens at all. Sensory issues are often cited in the top ten reasons for a reluctance to use sun protection, and more specifically the oily and greasy skin feel sunscreens leave after application. Stringent management of a formula’s oils can help address this though, and there are a number of promising approaches, too. For instance, our DSM Sunscreen Optimizer, an online simulation tool, integrates the additional amount of oils required by some UV-filters, thus offering the possibility for formulators to reduce these. You can also use a siliconised UV-filter such as Parsol SLX or formulate with a dry touch inducer such as Valvance Touch 210. Ideally, you want to work with all three of these approaches, as ultimately raising levels of sunscreen use means more health security for consumers, which is key in skin cancer prevention.
A second major trend is about looking for appealing new claims for sun care products. We saw this for the first time a couple of years ago when IR protection claims came up. However, an area which has long been neglected is visible light, and in particular blue light. This type of light still has a reasonable amount of energy in comparison to UV and penetrates the skin quite significantly. Like UVA, it causes oxidative stress in skin, but there are also some differences. For example, blue light on its own can tan individuals with skin type 3 and higher; and wearing an SPF 50+ with 4-star UVA protection in Tokyo screens out UV but not blue light. So there is a gap to close here.

We have carried out extensive research in this area, focusing on the effects of blue light and ways to treat them. We have also created in silico, in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo tests to establish blue light protection claims. Our current recommendation is to use physical light scattering to some degree   –Parsol Max and Parsol TX – both scatter blue light  plus anti-oxidants such as Niacinamide PC or Vitamin B6 and repair stimulants such as Pepha-Age.
The third significant trend we are seeing right now revolves around concerns about sun-screens, particularly in relation to their environmental impact. As you’ll be aware, the US state of Hawaii plans to ban the sale, offer of sale, or distribution of sunscreens containing oxybenzone or octinoxate, as from January 2021 because of concerns about preserving marine and coral reefs in the Pacific Ocean.

More generally though, we have noticed that consumers all over the globe have an increasingly strong desire to improve their environmental footprint and are considering this when they make any purchases.
One outcome of this trend has been a shift towards all- or heavy-mineral loaded sun-screens. This is why our company will be launching a zinc oxide product, called Parsol ZX at In-Cosmetics this year to fulfil this requirement.
This new product goes well with Parsol TX, but also non-mineral UV filters such as Parsol SLX. It must be emphasised though, that UV filters are highly regulated cosmetic ingredients. They go through a rigorous safety testing programme and are only approved after a thorough risk analysis.
At our company, we pay close attention to the impact our operations and products have on the environment and society as a matter of routine. This is why we take part in various independent assessments that are reported on publicly.

We are absolutely committed to controlling and minimising any adverse effects and all possible safety risks that our products could potentially pose for human or animal health, and the environment, throughout the entire value chain.