Natural photoprotectors: A literature review

Ultraviolet (UV) radiation has contributed to the onset of various skin diseases, including skin cancer. Consequently, there are a series of incentives for research and development of innovative photoprotectors that can provide protection against such health problems. With the growing consumer interest in cosmetic products of natural origin, there has been an increase in new proposals such as the replacement of synthetic assets with molecules extracted from medicinal plants that present activity compatible or superior to synthetic products and with lesser environmental impact. Natural photoprotectors are gaining attention within this scenario, and some previous studies have demonstrated their potential for use. A literature review was conducted on the main groups and active principles of plants with photoprotective activity and for this purpose we used national and international scientific articles from the Medline/PubMed, SCIELO, LILACs, Science Direct, Scopus and Google Scholar databases. We mentioned 17 different species of medicinal plants with photoprotective action and their respective active ingredients. The flavonoid group was the most cited and studied in relation to the protective capacity against ultraviolet radiation and its isolated action and synergistic action was highlighted. Studies show that plant extracts from different plant species have a photoprotective action, among which they highlight the rich in antioxidant compounds, such as plants of the species Ginkgo biloba, Psidium guajava, Camellia sinensis and Lippia sp. which stand out for their large amount of polyphenols, especially flavonoids.