Besides turning you skinny, vegetables can also save your skin. A new research shows that a broccoli ingredient lowers sunburn damage induced by UV light. UV radiation breaks down our DNA and this can provoke cancer. Humans have natural mechanisms for repairing damaged DNA, but UV induced damage can sometimes be too massive.

Cancer researchers have been searching for methods to enhance body's natural mechanisms. This time they checked sulforaphane, a chemical encountered in broccoli and related vegetables (like cauliflower and cabbage). Previous research made on lab animals had revealed that sulforaphane decreased the inflammation provoked by UV radiation.

The new research, carried on by a team led by pharmacologist Paul Talalay at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, was made on 6 human subjects, being at the same time control volunteers.

Various areas of their backs were exposed to different UV levels and broccoli sprout extract was applied on some areas, while the others did not receive the broccoli treatment.

Skin redness, suggesting cell damage, was measured at different intervals following the exposure. Skin patches where the extract was applied daily 3 days before UV exposure displayed, on average, a 37% lower cell damage.

"An ointment or cream based on sulforaphane could reduce the risk of skin cancer from UV radiation; it would not replace traditional sunscreen--which blocks UV rays--but would help cells handle any damage." said Talalay.

"There is a rising tide of skin cancer occurring all over the world. This research may play a big role in turning that tide." says dermatologist Francisco Tausk of the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York.

"The research could also help organ transplant patients who take immunosuppressive drugs that increase their risk of skin cancer. Chemotherapy is now commonly used to treat cancers, but chemoprevention has met with a lot of skepticism. This study clearly shows that it works in humans and should be pursued," said pharmacologist Michael Sporn of Dartmouth Medical School in Hanover, New Hampshire.