As a longtime Delray Beach dermatologist, Dr. Thomas Balshi has treated more cases of skin cancer than he can count.
And as a South Floridian who’s been active outdoors his entire life, he knows all too well how damaging our gorgeous tropical climate can be to skin health.
But despite the repeated public service reminders — and warnings — during May’s Skin Cancer Awareness Month, Balshi is realistic enough to recognize that far too many of his fellow South Floridians will fail to sufficiently protect themselves with sunscreen.
Why does this continue to happen despite the best efforts of skin-protection advocates?
Balshi believes it starts with sunscreen products themselves.
“Most sunscreens that you see on store shelves are oily, thick and leave a white film on the skin,” he explains. “In addition, many contain a host of chemical ingredients that may or may not be healthy for our skin. For example, retinyl palmitate has been flagged as a potential carcinogen and both oxybenzone and octinoxate are known to be harmful to coral reefs.”
Balshi empathizes with folks who don’t enjoy using most over-the-counter sunscreens because he never enjoyed using them either.
So he decided to something about it: Create his own patented product, which he named JACKET.
Delray Beach dermatologist Dr. Thomas Balshi created his own patented sunscreen called JACKET. He says “we wanted JACKET to do more than just protect — I wanted it to repair sun damage as well.”
Balshi explains that his goal with JACKET sunscreen was “to develop something with superior protection that didn’t leave that heavy white residue or smell too tropical, or be too heavy, greasy or oily.”
Balshi says he worked closely with a biochemist and pharmacist to develop a product that would “accomplish everything we were looking for in a sunscreen. We wanted it to provide superior protection as well as be water resistant, lightweight, have little to no fragrance, and be environmentally friendly.”
But he had an additional goal in mind too: “We wanted JACKET to do more than just protect — I wanted it to repair sun damage as well.”
According to Balshi, he and his team were able to accomplish this by adding specific antioxidants and other ingredients that fade hyperpigmentation — i.e., “sun spots” or “age spots” — that are caused by ultraviolet rays.
(Although there’s been no clinical testing yet to verify JACKET’s ability to do this, Balshi notes that the product’s combination of ingredients “have been shown in other studies to repair sun damage and fade age spots.”)
Balshi says that it took five years of testing and fine-tuning before he and his scientists developed their patented formula and believed it met their own exacting standards.
JACKET received FDA approval in 2017.
Balshi explains that his original intention with JACKET was to provide an alternative sunscreen for his patients as well as their friends, loved ones and anyone else who heard about it via word of mouth.
In other words, it was a passion project.
“Of course, I also wanted a better, more comfortable and effective sunscreen for me and my family,” he says. “We use it every day.”
Balshi believes that what makes JACKET different from — and potentially superior to — other sunscreens lie in the unique combination of ingredients.
Balshi notes that one of the most common mistakes people make when choosing a sunscreen is that “they don’t read the label and check for ingredients. For example, research has shown that zinc oxide provides the best protection against UV rays — yet many chemical based sunscreens don’t contain it.”
That’s why, he says, he and his team prioritized using only the most efficacious, and least harmful, ingredients in JACKET.
“Ultraviolet light causes damage to skin cells by creating substances called free radicals. The antioxidants in JACKET are there to neutralize those free radicals,” he explains. “In addition, the vitamins and herbal extracts provide support to our skin’s natural immune system.”
According to Balshi, the inclusion of such healthful ingredients as green tea, lemongrass, pomegranate, cucumber extracts, vitamin C extracts, aloe, sunflower oil, vitamin E and alpha arbutin, among others, is rarely, if ever, found in typical sunscreens.
He also says that he’s received feedback from female users who “tell me that because JACKET feels so light on the skin, it doesn’t interfere with their application of makeup in the morning, or reapplication of makeup later in the day.”
Dr. Junée Gardy is one of those users.
A cosmetic dentist and wellness spa owner in Naples, Gardy discovered JACKET during a visit to Palm Beach County.
“I apply it every morning before I put on any makeup because it’s not greasy, it’s waterproof, and it doesn’t irritate my skin,” Gardy said. “It has a really nice light and subtle lemon scent, and when I apply it to my skin it doesn’t look white or change the appearance of my complexion.”
A combination of word of mouth and informal guerilla marketing have helped JACKET build a modest but loyal following. Currently, the product is available on amazon, at Balshi’s medical practice website (southflderm.com) and on jacketsunscreen.com.
But Balshi believes his product is poised to expand to a wider audience. He says he’s finalizing talks with some “very recognizable names” to become brand ambassadors and is in the early stages of developing a retail sales program that will make JACKET available in golf and tennis pro shops, dive shops, sports stores and other outdoor-enthusiast locations.
“I enjoy playing sports and spending time outdoors and JACKET is the first sunscreen that ‘checks all the boxes’ for me — especially because it is one of the few 50+ sunscreens that is also safe to wear while diving Florida’s precious reefs,” noted Gardy.
Currently, JACKET comes in a 4-ounce SPF 50+ lotion; Balshi says that a spray version and other related products are being developed.
Balshi is fond of joking that if enough people were to apply JACKET and other sunscreens habitually and properly, “it would put me out of business as a dermatologist.”
One gets the sense he’d like nothing better.
The story, as it originally appeared in The Palm Beach Post on May 28, 2024.