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CNN Live At Daybreak

What You Eat Can Protect You From Summer Sun

Aired July 16, 2003 - 06:24   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Eat your sunscreen and avoid that nasty burn. It sounds a little far-fetched. But what you eat can protect you from the summer sun.
Live to New York and Lisa Drayer of Dietwatch.com.

OK, Lisa, I'm excited. What can you eat to protect you from the sun?

LISA DRAYER, NUTRITIONIST: Well, it's not that bottle filled with SPF15. But that still is the most important thing you can do to protect your skin. But there are some foods that have some special ingredients the may provide us with some protection. For example, a cantaloupe, mangoes and watermelon, these fruits, as well as red and orange vegetables like red peppers and carrots, also dark leafy greens such as spinach, contain carotenoids like beta carotene and lutein. And a recent study showed in the "Journal of Nutrition" that individuals who supplemented their diet with carotenoids had reduced redness in their skin after their skin was irradiated with ultraviolet light. This is the sun's harmful rays.

COSTELLO: You're kidding. So cantaloupe, watermelon, mangoes, iced tea, Brazil nuts, some seafood?

DRAYER: Right. Well, the iced tea, iced tea specifically made with green tea. We've heard a lot about the health benefits of green tea. It contains a special chemical known as EGCG. Black tea has some but it has less. And a recent study showed that EGCG helped to protect human skin cells in culture against damage, that is, DNA damage caused by ultraviolet light.

COSTELLO: That's incredible.

DRAYER: So this is very helpful.

COSTELLO: So also brown rice, raspberries and soy products?

DRAYER: Yes. These, this, all of these foods show some promising research. We still need to see studies in humans, but, for instance, brown rice and nuts such as Brazil nuts contain selenium. Selenium is an important mineral and anti-oxidant that may help provide us with protection. It's helped human skin cells against the sun's harmful rays. The same with raspberries. Raspberries contain a compound known as ellagic acid and it may help protect our skin and help keep collagen intact, which is the protein that helps maintain our skin.

COSTELLO: Yes, we like that.

So, but you can't like gorge on Brazil nuts and be totally protected?

DRAYER: No, it's not...

COSTELLO: You still have to wear the sunscreen?

DRAYER: Exactly. And one Brazil nut will give you your daily needs of selenium. So certainly we're not talking about a lot.

COSTELLO: All right, Lisa Drayer, many thanks.

Very interesting stuff this morning.

DRAYER: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired July 16, 2003 - 06:24   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Eat your sunscreen and avoid that nasty burn. It sounds a little far-fetched. But what you eat can protect you from the summer sun.
Live to New York and Lisa Drayer of Dietwatch.com.

OK, Lisa, I'm excited. What can you eat to protect you from the sun?

LISA DRAYER, NUTRITIONIST: Well, it's not that bottle filled with SPF15. But that still is the most important thing you can do to protect your skin. But there are some foods that have some special ingredients the may provide us with some protection. For example, a cantaloupe, mangoes and watermelon, these fruits, as well as red and orange vegetables like red peppers and carrots, also dark leafy greens such as spinach, contain carotenoids like beta carotene and lutein. And a recent study showed in the "Journal of Nutrition" that individuals who supplemented their diet with carotenoids had reduced redness in their skin after their skin was irradiated with ultraviolet light. This is the sun's harmful rays.

COSTELLO: You're kidding. So cantaloupe, watermelon, mangoes, iced tea, Brazil nuts, some seafood?

DRAYER: Right. Well, the iced tea, iced tea specifically made with green tea. We've heard a lot about the health benefits of green tea. It contains a special chemical known as EGCG. Black tea has some but it has less. And a recent study showed that EGCG helped to protect human skin cells in culture against damage, that is, DNA damage caused by ultraviolet light.

COSTELLO: That's incredible.

DRAYER: So this is very helpful.

COSTELLO: So also brown rice, raspberries and soy products?

DRAYER: Yes. These, this, all of these foods show some promising research. We still need to see studies in humans, but, for instance, brown rice and nuts such as Brazil nuts contain selenium. Selenium is an important mineral and anti-oxidant that may help provide us with protection. It's helped human skin cells against the sun's harmful rays. The same with raspberries. Raspberries contain a compound known as ellagic acid and it may help protect our skin and help keep collagen intact, which is the protein that helps maintain our skin.

COSTELLO: Yes, we like that.

So, but you can't like gorge on Brazil nuts and be totally protected?

DRAYER: No, it's not...

COSTELLO: You still have to wear the sunscreen?

DRAYER: Exactly. And one Brazil nut will give you your daily needs of selenium. So certainly we're not talking about a lot.

COSTELLO: All right, Lisa Drayer, many thanks.

Very interesting stuff this morning.

DRAYER: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com