Akimana C, Wikantyasning ER. The impact of regular use of sunscreen on vitamin d synthesis and diabetes risk alongside related contributions of AI – a narrative review. Series Endo Diab Met. 2025;7(2):1-12.
The daily topical application of sunscreen is widely recommended to shield the skin against harmful ultraviolet radiation exposure and prevent skin cancer, particularly in diabetic patients, who are more prone to the dangers of skin complications such as skin hypersensitivity, sunburns, slow wound healing, and xerosis (dry skin). Due to sunscreen’s role in blocking ultraviolet radiation, there is a potential rise in concerns about its impact on lowering vitamin D levels by interfering with its biosynthesis pathway. Vitamin D plays a crucial role in balancing glycemic levels in blood by promoting insulin production, cellular receptor sensitivity, and metabolism. Low vitamin D status has been closely linked to impairment of the islets of Langerhans, pancreatic beta cells, which is further attributed to lessened insulin secretions, amplifying the risk of developing diabetes; sparking controversy over whether daily usage of sunscreen is a potential causative factor of the metabolic imbalance. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as a powerful health research tool with advanced methods for analyzing sophisticated datasets and identifying patterns in health status parameters such as vitamin D levels, regular sunscreen use, and diabetes risk. This review article thoroughly explores the connection between excessive ultraviolet B (UVB) sun radiation protection, vitamin D biosynthesis, and associated diabetes risk. Additionally, it also offers recommendations, insights on the progress of AI technology, and promising novel approaches as solutions to achieve healthy UVB radiation exposure without disrupting the vitamin D synthesis pathway, which is further related to heightened diabetes risk.
