Join James Macfarlane, medical science research and development expert at Cantabria Labs, for our on-demand masterclass in maximizing photoprotection – a comprehensive overview of the ground-breaking antioxidant technology Fernblock® and photoprotection supplements from Heliocare!
This masterclass offers an insightful journey into the evolving market trends, requirements, and advancements in photoprotection over the years and takes you on a deep dive into the origins, composition, and science behind Fernblock® Technology – the supercharged antioxidant with photoprotection properties that’s exclusive to Cantabria Labs.
This masterclass is an exciting opportunity to gain direct insights from an industry expert who will help you to understand the robust clinical evidence that support Fernblock’s claims and its protective and transformative impact on skin health. We will also explore how Heliocare’s oral photoprotection supplements can help further enhance skin health and boost the efficacy of topical photoprotection for maximum protection.
What’s on the agenda?
- INSIGHT into market trends, requirements, and advancements in photoprotection over the years.
- DEEP DIVE into the origins, composition, and science behind Fernblock® and the clinical evidence that supports its claims.
- DISCOVER how Heliocare’s oral photoprotection supplements can assist in the enhancement of skin health and topical photoprotection efficacy and the clinical evidence that supports its claims.
- Q&A session with James Macfarlane from the LIVE session
“Cantabria Labs has been a pioneer in photoprotection, being the first to develop oral formulations and provide protection against visible and blue light. Fernblock allows us to take photoprotection to new levels, ensuring more comprehensive and effective activity against the harmful effects of sun and light exposure.”
About our keynote speaker – James Macfarlane
James Macfarlane is Corporate Marketing Project Manager at Cantabria Labs, responsible for the development and implementation of new dermatological products and technologies.
He works closely with the scientific and medical community to ensure that new developments and needs are quickly integrated into the Cantabria Labs ethos and company vision to provide physicians and skincare specialists with the most innovative, effective and safe solutions to patient needs.
James Macfarlane is a frequent speaker at congresses, advisory boards, and special industry events throughout Europe and internationally.
Watch the webinar
Live webinar Q&A
Below are some questions submitted by participants as part of our live session. Please read these and if you have any further questions drop us a message at [email protected].
1. Did Dr. Thomas Fitzpatrick develop Fernblock?
Dr Fitzpatrick was involved in the development of Fernblock alongside Dr Pathak, Dr Salvador Gonzalez and Juan Matji (the founder of Cantabria Labs).
When Fernblock was in research and development in the early 1990s, Dr Fitzpatrick was studying vitiligo and was treating vitiligo patients with PUVA therapy which was proving to be helpful in inducing pigmentation. However, there were concerns as to the adverse effects the therapy could have on skin (high levels of UVA exposure to unprotected skin, topical filters of course could not be used), especially in long-term treatments.
They started looking into ways to help protect the skin while continuing to receive the benefits of phototherapy and began investigating oral administration of Fernblock. Initial studies were in fact focused on preventing skin damage in patients undergoing PUVA therapy (erythema, Langerhans cells, DNA damage and repair). They found oral Fernblock to be a suitable adjuvant for this which helped protect the skin from UV light from within.
2. What are the ingredients within Fernblock? Could the Heliocare 360° capsules supplement replace any other potential supplements a client may be taking?
The primary ingredient is Fernblock (240mg) and, to a lesser degree, vitamins C and E. The dosage of the vitamins C and E is relatively low compared to the recommended daily dosages (25% of vitamin C recommended daily intake and less than 20% of Vitamin E recommended daily intake).
Heliocare 360° supplements have very specific photoprotection activity and the capsules are not designed as a substitute for topical photoprotection or other supplements but should be used alongside these to enhance photoprotection and antioxidant activity.
3. What are the contraindications for use of the Heliocare 360° capsules? And are there any medications that this supplement interacts with?
There are no known contraindications with any other pharmacological or nutritional supplements.
We advise that women who are pregnant or breastfeeding avoid use of the capsules as there are no clinical studies involving women who are pregnant or breastfeeding and therefore its safety is not proven within this group.
4. Is Fernblock something a client with melasma should take all year round?
Yes, absolutely. Oral Fernblock is something a patient with Melasma really should take all year round, especially because of what we now know about UVA, visible light and blue light being present all year round. Clinical trials have demonstrated its efficacy in reducing the intensity and extension of melasma in addition to topical sunscreen and any cosmetic or pharmacological pigment correction products being used.
At the most recent congress of the American Academy of Dermatology, an expert on melasma and skin of colour, Dr Pearl Grimes, said that no anti-melasma treatment protocol should be complete without oral photoprotection.
5. Are there any contraindications in relation to people who have had other cancers? (Specifically clients who have been advised against taking biotin or vitamin E/A)
We know that many types of cancer treatments work by creating extremely high levels of free radicals and oxidative stress to attack and eliminate the cancer cells.
For this reason, antioxidants are often advised against during cancer treatment as they could contribute to inhibiting the free radical damage needed for effective treatment – much like during Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) for Actinic Keratosis when we advise stopping the use of Fernblock two days before treatment and then resuming the following day. The treating physician’s (oncologist, radiologist, …) advice should always be asked before taking Fernblock, or in fact any food supplement.
A number of experts have suggested that Fernblock could be in fact be useful in the management of side-effects of cancer treatments (photosensitivity, inflammation, …) and a pilot clinical trial is currently being designed to investigate this possibility.
6. Can Fernblock interfere with biologic injections for psoriasis?
No, there is no interference between Fernblock and biologicals.
