Alternative Inorganic UV Filters

Some of the properties of TiO2, ZnO, and other semiconducting metal oxides, especially their nano-forms, have renewed concerns over their use in sunscreens. The current regulations related to the use of metal oxides for photoprotection could be reviewed as new information comes to light regarding their harmful effects in the human body or to organisms in the environment. This has led researchers to investigate alternative inorganic substances for application as UV filters having good UVR attenuation capacity minus the undesirable features of metal oxides. Natural materials have received interest due to their relatively low cost, abundance in nature, nontoxicity and high biocompatibility. This chapter discusses the different inorganic substances investigated in studies in the literature and their modification towards use as UV filters.