Coppertone® Solar Research Center Releases 'Suncare 2020' Symposium Key Insights

WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J., July 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The COPPERTONE® Solar Research Center, Merck Consumer Care's suncare research and development facility, today published key insights from its "Suncare 2020" Symposium held recently in New York City.  The event convened selected thought leaders from government, medicine, academia, advocacy and industry to initiate dialogue and capture vision around the best ways to educate the American public in today's evolving suncare environment.

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Key Themes and Recommendations

Symposium participants agreed an urgent need exists to clarify conflicting messages for Americans surrounding suncare, to increase education efforts around tanning addiction and empower consumers to take control of their skin health.  Recommendations focused on a collaborative approach to improve the public's awareness and understanding of proper sun protection.  Four critical themes emerged from the symposium:

1. Create Information to Prompt Behavior Change.  A gap remains between consumer suncare knowledge and behavior, potentially because adopting long-term healthy skin habits may not show immediate, tangible results.  Participants agreed that fear-based approaches to fostering positive behavior change are less desirable than extensive education regarding safe sun practices.  Symposium attendees recommended empowering consumers with incentives and information to help drive healthier skin protection choices.
2. Help Educate the Public on Navigating Expected Sunscreen Labeling and Product Performance Rules. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is expected to release in October its final rule on the sunscreen monograph, which may include changes on such elements as usage, active ingredients, testing and product labeling. The symposium posed a call to action to help consumers clearly understand what these changes may mean.  
3. Separate Myth from Reality. The public is inundated with inconsistent messages in the media about topics such as tanning, vitamin D, sunscreen ingredients and good sun protection habits. Often this information generates misunderstanding that places the public at increased risk for making unhealthy choices. A collaborative effort is needed in order to help consumers better understand the facts.
4. Tailor Education Efforts to Resonate with Generational and Cultural Needs. Participants agreed cultural and generational cohorts maintain different attitudes and behaviors about suncare. For instance, many young women still believe a tan signifies beauty. The experts suggested creating education campaigns for children to help them adopt healthy suncare habits.

"Skin cancer is an epidemic, and yet it's often a preventable disease. Unfortunately, many consumers still see challenges in adopting healthy suncare behaviors, either because they still believe a tan is attractive or because they don't understand the risks of not protecting their skin," said David J. Leffell, M.D., Professor of Dermatology and Surgery at the Yale School of Medicine, who served as the symposium's moderator. "Knowledge is a powerful tool in empowering consumers."  

Coppertone® Solar Research Center Develops Checklist to Help Educate the Public

Prompted by the Symposium's call to action, the COPPERTONE® Solar Research Center is offering an easy-to-remember checklist to "RAISE" public awareness on expected elements to be addressed in FDA's upcoming final sunscreen monograph.  The tool below can serve as a guide to help consumers navigate anticipated changes:

• Rating UVA Protection: New UVA information will likely be required on sunscreen labels in addition to SPF.
• Anti-Aging: Products with SPF may be further limited in making claims related to premature skin aging.  
• Ingredients: New active ingredients or active ingredient combinations could be approved.
• SPF Cap: SPF values may be capped (for example, a proposed cap of SPF 50+ might be enacted).
• Expression of Claims: Claims language on sunscreen labels could change. For instance, the word "sunblock" may no longer be permitted to appear anywhere on product labeling.  All products would be labeled "sunscreens."

"The COPPERTONE® Solar Research Center has a legacy of innovation and leadership in educating consumers about sun protection," said Robert Bianchini, Ph.D., Vice President of Skincare Research and Development at the COPPERTONE® Solar Research Center. "This tool is emblematic of our continued commitment to enable the public to make informed suncare choices."

The "Suncare 2020" Symposium summary and "RAISE" checklist are available at http://coppertone.com/coppertone/mediaroom.jsp.

About the Coppertone® Solar Research Center

Located in Memphis, Tenn., the COPPERTONE® Solar Research Center is one of the largest corporate facilities for testing the effectiveness and performance of sunscreens. Each year, its suncare scientists conduct hundreds of tests on sunscreen formulas to ensure products meet both consumers' needs and rigorous testing standards. The research and development team oversees the development of a wide variety of global suncare products that are manufactured and marketed around the world, including in Europe and Japan. 

About Merck

Today's Merck is a global healthcare leader working to help the world be well. Merck Consumer Care, or MSD Consumer Care outside the United States and Canada, is the global consumer products division of Merck & Co, Inc. Each day, millions count on one or more of our brands that help prevent or treat various common conditions. These include some of the world's most-trusted brands such as CLARITIN for allergies, COPPERTONE for sun care, DR. SCHOLL'S for foot care and many more. Merck Consumer Care is committed to continuing its tradition of innovation by developing and delivering new and accessible over-the-counter health solutions to people around the world.

Merck. Be well. For more information, visit www.merck.com.

Forward Looking Statement

This news release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements may include, but are not limited to, statements about the benefits of the merger between Merck and Schering-Plough, including future financial and operating results, the combined company's plans, objectives, expectations and intentions and other statements that are not historical facts. Such statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Merck's management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

The following factors, among others, could cause actual results to differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements: the possibility that the expected synergies from the merger of Merck and Schering-Plough will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period; the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation; the risk that the businesses will not be integrated successfully; disruption from the merger making it more difficult to maintain business and operational relationships; Merck's ability to accurately predict future market conditions; dependence on the effectiveness of Merck's patents and other protections for innovative products; the risk of new and changing regulation and health policies in the U.S. and internationally and the exposure to litigation and/or regulatory actions.

Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in Merck's 2009 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC's Internet site (www.sec.gov).

COPPERTONE is a registered trademark of Schering-Plough HealthCare Products, Inc., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc.

SOURCE Merck & Co., Inc.