Sun spots are brown spots that appear on your skin from exposure to the sun. Those brown spots can make you appear much older than you are. If you have sun spots on your skin, you may be doing your best to try and hide them. Preventing them in the first place is one way to avoid sun spots. Read on for tips to avoid sun spots and what you can do about the ones you do have.
Use Sunscreen
Sunscreen with an SPF of at least 50 can be beneficial in preventing sun spots. Sunscreen can protect you against the sun's harmful rays, protecting you from premature aging skin and sun spots as well. Wear sunscreen whenever you are outside in the sun. If you tend to break out from sunscreen, use sheer sunscreen made specifically for the face or sunscreen made for sensitive skin.
Cover Your Skin
In addition to wearing sunscreen, cover your skin as much as you can to protect it from the sun's harmful rays. Dress in lightweight fabrics in the summer months and cover your skin in the winter months as well. Wearing hats and sunglasses to keep your skin out of the sun will also help. If you're laying out at the pool, stay under an umbrella or canopy and out of the sun.
Adjust Your Hormones
Your hormone levels may lead you to develop more sun spots. If you are on birth control, for instance, you may be more susceptible to sun spots than if you were not on it. Small sun spots, or even melasma (larger patches of brown pigment) may occur if you have an increase in hormone levels. Talk to your physician about adjusting your hormone levels in order to avoid sun spots and melasma.
What You Can Do About Your Sun Spots
If you already have sun spots, there are a few things you can do about them. Talk to your dermatologist about what is right for you. Some treatments that can be used include:
- Chemical peels. A chemical peel can be used to peel away the outer layer of the skin to reveal the layer below the surface. Chemical peels should only ever be performed by a professional dermatologist and should never be done at home.
- Microdermabrasion. Microdermabrasion can be used to gently scrub away dead skin cells. This can help remove sun spots as well as other imperfections such as acne scars.
- Skin bleaching. Bleaching the skin can also help get rid of sun spots and other scars as well. Skin bleaching treatments should only ever be done with dermatologist-approved treatments.
If you have sun spots already, talk to your dermatologist about treatment options. Protect your skin from sun spots by using the tips above. Contact a medical facility like Desert Dermatology & Skin Cancer Specialists to learn more.
Did you know that dermatologists can do more than simply prescribe creams and washes? In addition to being skincare experts, they often carry out procedures like skin grafts, laser hair removal, and Botox injections. They are truly experts on all things skin-related, and therefore the dermatologist's office is the place you should go if you have any concerns about your own skin.
You can also ease your concerns by reading here. This website is not a substitute for dermatology care, but it is a good place to learn more about this field of medicine and the wonderful treatments it has to offer.