Age spots

Age spots

This condition is known as aging freckles, hepatic spots, or aging nevus. But its name certainly does not concern you, the important thing is that you can get rid of it, so in this article, we will discuss everything related to aging freckles.

Definition of aging freckles

It is small dark areas flat on the skin. They vary in size and usually appear in areas exposed to the sun, such as the face, hands, shoulders, and arms. Aging freckles are also called sunspots, liver spots, and sun freckles. Aging freckles are very common in adults over 50, but they may appear in younger people if they spend time in the sun.

Symptoms

Age spots can affect all skin types, but they are more common in people with white skin and are as follows:

• Flat and oval areas of excess pigmentation.
• Brown, brown or black.
• It affects the skin most exposed to the sun over the years, such as the back of the hands, the top of the feet, the face, the shoulders, and the upper back.
• The size of the age spots ranges from the size of the freckle to approximately 1/2 inch (13 millimeters), and can combine together; What makes it more visible.

Protection

Follow these tips to reduce exposure to sunlight, to help avoid age spots and new spots after treatment:

• Avoid the sun at 10 a.m. And 2:00 p.m. Since the sunshine during this time is very strong, consider scheduling outdoor activities at other times of the day.
• Wear sunscreen. Use a wide-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 for about 15 to 30 minutes before going out. Apply a large amount of sunscreen, and reapply every two or more hours when swimming or sweating.
• Spoil your body. Wear tightly woven clothes that cover your arms and legs and a wide-brimmed hat that provides more protection than a baseball or golf cap, to protect against the sun.
• Make sure to wear clothes designed specifically for sun protection. Look for the best protection of UPF clothing labeled 40 to 50

Treatment

If you want to make aging freckles less visible, treatments are available to reduce or remove them. Since the dye is found at the base of the dermis - the top layer of skin - any treatment aimed at relieving aging freckles must penetrate this layer of skin.

Treatments for freckle aging include prescribed whitening creams (hydroquinone) alone or with retinoid (tretinoin) drugs, a mild steroid, or laser therapy and intense light pulses.

After treatment, the aging freckle gradually fades over several weeks or months. Laser treatment has a few side effects, but it may lead to a slight change in skin color. Sun protection cream should be applied after laser treatment or intense pulses of light.

References

Age spots (liver spots) - Symptoms and causes. (2020, January 21). Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/age-spots/symptoms-causes/syc-20355859

"Overview about liver spots/age spots". Beauty Natural Skin. Retrieved 3 July 2015.

"Age spots (liver spots) Treatments and drugs". Mayo Clinic. Retrieved 2017-02-12.