As the years march on, our skin begins to bear countless marks and stains. Many of these skin irregularities can be traced back to the sun’s rays. The sun heats and radiates our skin, and while the skin is pretty good at protecting us, that protection can come at the cost of beauty. For many people, having a clear complexion is extremely important, and sun damaged skin can mar that aesthetic. The internet offers up a vast array of strange solutions for sun damage, like taking buttermilk baths, rubbing your face with tea bags, or slicing up lemons and onions to apply to your skin. Like most home remedies, though, these solutions are undependable and often don’t work, which leaves many wondering whether there is a way to conveniently and effectively deal with sun damage?
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF SUN DAMAGED SKIN?
Sun damage is an umbrella term to refer to any sort of skin damage or irregularity that emerges from overexposure to the sun. Something as comon as a freckle is an example of sun damage. Freckles are caused by a buildup of melanin. This buildup of melanin acts as a natural sun block, shielding the body from damaging radiation.
Related Article: How to Get Rid of Freckles >>
Uneven skin tone is also a comon symptom of sun damaged skin. If the shade of your skin blends from light to dark in certain areas, that could be a result of UV radiation.
Similarly, red blotches can appear due to the skin’s attempt to recover after overexposure to sun. This is a result of broken capillaries. If the skin is regularly damaged by the sun, the body will attempt to create new blood vessels to help the skin recover, creating a reddish tint or, in bad cases, even stark, visible veins running just under the surface of the skin.
Sun spots, or liver spots, are also exceedingly comon, and appear from the same conditions that cause freckles. Too much melanin production can result in many splotches of skin that are brown or darker than the surrounding skin.
Related Article: Hyperpigmentation: Understanding Freckles, Acne Marks, Melasma & Sunspots
Besides skin blemishes, pigmentation irregularities, and discoloration, the sun can cause your skin to age prematurely. Known as photo aging, UV exposure breaks down the collagen within your skin. Collagen is the structural protein keeps skin looking firm, healthy, and wrinkle free. Collagen production slows as we age. Exposure to the sun accelerates this process leading to fine lines and wrinkles, skin laxity, and other signs of aging.
WHO’S SUSCEPTIBLE TO SUN DAMAGED SKIN?
Overexposure to the sun can damage anyone’s skin, although people with lighter skin tend to develop sun damage much easier. Those parts of the body that are exposed to the sun more often, like legs, arms, and faces, tend to develop more sun damage than the rest of the body that is comonly covered. Sun damage tends to become much more obvious in the summer, since people tend to wear move revealing clothing, but also because even those parts of the body already damaged by the sun can respond to new UV radiation by growing even darker and more visible.
TREATMENTS FOR SUN DAMAGED SKIN
There is no guarantee that you will be able to totally rid yourself of sun damaged skin, but the good news is that there are treatments, which can dependably reduce the appearance or decrease the size of most types of sun damage. Unlike undependable home remedies, these solutions are medical procedures that are performed by professionals, using state of the art technology, scientifically proven¹ to deliver noticeable improvements to freckles, uneven skin tone, sun spots, and discoloration.
One of the most popular and effective treatment for sun damaged skin is an IPL Photofacial. IPL Photofacials transmit intense pulsed light (IPL) into the locations where sun damage has occurred, which has a remarkable effect on sun spots, freckles, and broken capillaries. IPL Photofacials are a proven way to address sun damage on your skin.
Continue reading to learn more about this non-invasive procedure. >>
Sources:
¹ Long-term Clinical Results of IPL Photorejuvenation. Journal of Cosmetic and Laser Therapy: Official Publication of the European Society for Laser Dermatology.
