eternitys_child
Proud Member
This would be awesome for people effected by vitaligo. They would be able to go out in the sun again without having to cover themselves. Their skin would be an even tone. I hope this comes true.
http://www.themercury.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=4317254
Pepper may help disfiguring skin condition
March 24, 2008 Edition 1
LONDON: Black pepper could lead to better treatments for a disfiguring skin condition that affects about 1% of the world's population, British researchers have found.
A team at King's College London showed in a study of mice that piperine - the compound that gives black pepper its spicy, pungent flavour - and its synthetic derivatives helped stimulate pigmentation in the skin of people with vitiligo.
Piperine was particularly effective when combined with phototherapy treatment using ultraviolet radiation, the researchers said in a study to be published in the British Journal of Dermatology.
"We have shown that topical treatment with piperine stimulates even pigmentation in the skin," Antony Young, a photobiologist at King's College who worked on the study, said.
"This provides support for the future clinical evaluation of piperine and its derivatives as novel treatments for vitiligo."
The disease, to which pop star Michael Jackson has in the past attributed his gradual skin whitening, destroys the melanin which gives skin its colour. Melanin protects from ultraviolet rays, so victims run a much higher risk of skin cancer.
Vitiligo was of particular concern in people with darker skins, the researchers said.
Treatments include steroids applied to patchy skin and phototherapy. But many people did not respond to hormones and phototherapy could raise the risk of skin cancer, the researchers said.
The team compared the effects of piperine and its derivatives when applied to the skin of mice either alone or followed by radiation treatment.
They found that when used alone the compounds stimulated pigmentation to an even, light brown colour within six weeks. When boosted by radiation, the treatment led to even darker skin in about the same period of time. - Reuters
http://www.themercury.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=4317254
Pepper may help disfiguring skin condition
March 24, 2008 Edition 1
LONDON: Black pepper could lead to better treatments for a disfiguring skin condition that affects about 1% of the world's population, British researchers have found.
A team at King's College London showed in a study of mice that piperine - the compound that gives black pepper its spicy, pungent flavour - and its synthetic derivatives helped stimulate pigmentation in the skin of people with vitiligo.
Piperine was particularly effective when combined with phototherapy treatment using ultraviolet radiation, the researchers said in a study to be published in the British Journal of Dermatology.
"We have shown that topical treatment with piperine stimulates even pigmentation in the skin," Antony Young, a photobiologist at King's College who worked on the study, said.
"This provides support for the future clinical evaluation of piperine and its derivatives as novel treatments for vitiligo."
The disease, to which pop star Michael Jackson has in the past attributed his gradual skin whitening, destroys the melanin which gives skin its colour. Melanin protects from ultraviolet rays, so victims run a much higher risk of skin cancer.
Vitiligo was of particular concern in people with darker skins, the researchers said.
Treatments include steroids applied to patchy skin and phototherapy. But many people did not respond to hormones and phototherapy could raise the risk of skin cancer, the researchers said.
The team compared the effects of piperine and its derivatives when applied to the skin of mice either alone or followed by radiation treatment.
They found that when used alone the compounds stimulated pigmentation to an even, light brown colour within six weeks. When boosted by radiation, the treatment led to even darker skin in about the same period of time. - Reuters
