Age spots on the skin really darken up from summer sun exposure. They tan better than normal skin and really stand out, even after the briefest sun exposure. There are three things I tell my patients to do to help keep their age spots from getting darker during the summer. People who do all three get the best results.

3 Easy Steps You Can Take to Help Prevent Darkening of Age Spots:

1. Keep the sun off of your skin
2. Exfoliate regularly
   
3. Use skin lightening products to ‘turn down’ your skin’s ability to tan

1. How to best keep the sun off your skin to prevent age spot darkening:

The best way to keep the sun off of your age spots is by covering them with clothing. For areas of your skin that you can’t cover (eg. your face), wear a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher that contains 5% or more micro zinc oxide. I give extensive recommendations on sun protection in some of my recent posts:

Are Your Summer Clothes Good Enough To Be Sun Protective Clothing

How To Apply Sunscreen & Have Healthy, Fabulous Skin Forever

2. Exfoliation to lighten age spots:

Exfoliating lightens your age spots because the dead skin cell layers above them are extra thick and the brown color is carried up through every layer. Because of this, age spots are sort of like little speed bumps and regular exfoliation of the dead skin really lightens up the dark color because they sit slightly higher than the rest of the skin. The best way to do this is with my Anti Aging Body Skin Care Kit that includes both physical exfoliation and strong AHA glycolic acid exfoliation. Over the years, I’ve had many thousands of my patients using this kit and it works beautifully to lighten age spots. I’ve used it myself for at least 10 years and have watched my age spots actually go away just because I’m using these products; I created the kit for my 40th birthday when I got my first age spot on my arm — it went away in a few months after using my new kit, which was a great ‘happy birthday to me’ !

3. Using skin pigment lighteners to fade age spots:

I also have my patients ‘turn down’ pigment production with prescription bleaching creams that contain 4% hydroquinone, and prescription Retin A (tretinoin). There are tricks to using these products and they have side effects so ask your doctor if these treatments would be appropriate for you. One of my favorite skin lightening programs is The Obagi Nu Derm System and I discussed it during a post that I wrote this winter:

Winter: Now Is The Time To Fix Your Unwanted Age Spots and Skin Pigmentation

The good news about age spots is that it really is possible to get through the summer without getting spottier and spottier. Using any one of these steps to prevent age spot darkening will help, and doing all three is even more effective. You might even see them get lighter than they are in the winter!

A final note on age spots:

Remember that not every brown spot is an age spot. Melanoma, a deadly cancer, can often start looking like one of your age spots. If you have age spots, you’ve probably also had a lot of sun exposure in your life and would be well served by getting an annual skin exam by your dermatologist. Early detection of skin cancer really does save lives, I see it every day.

If You Found This Information Helpful, You May Also Want To Read:

How To Get The Most Out Of Your Anti Aging Skin Care

Choosing The Right Make Up For Post Menopausal Skin

Use Self Tanners Like A Pro

Skip The Tan And Eat Your Veggies For Beautiful Skin Color

Photo Mik Hartwell Flickr

News flash: refined carbs are linked to acne!

Scientists have found that people who eat lots of highly refined carbs are more likely to get acne.  Our modern western diet is loaded with highly refined carbs: cookies, chips, white bread, crackers, cereals, donuts, candy bars, pasta, pizza etc.  This means acne should be common, and it is.

It’s high glycemic index foods that are linked to acne. Highly refined carbs have a high glycemic index. Cut down on high glycemic foods and your acne should improve. To understand this, you need to know:

• what the ‘glycemic index’ is,
• how the glycemic index differs from carbohydrates,
• what effect high glycemic foods have on your body’s insulin levels and why that matters (yes this is a lot of science, but it’s important for understanding the carb/acne connection).

In simple terms, the glycemic index measures a foods ability to quickly increase your blood sugar, which in turn tells your body to make insulin:

• Foods with a higher glycemic index number increase your blood sugar faster than foods with the same amount of carbohydrates but a lower glycemic index number.
• Refined carbohydrate foods have a higher glycemic index number than complex/non-refined carbohydrate foods and raise your blood sugar faster (because you digest them faster).  For example, white flour bread raises your blood sugar faster than whole grain bread, the same is true for white rice versus brown rice.  Fruit juice raises your blood sugar faster than a piece of fruit.
• When your blood sugar rises fast your body responds by producing a lot of insulin, which lowers your blood sugar by sending the sugar into your cells for storage.  It’s this high blood sugar/ high insulin situation that’s linked to acne!

When your body has to produce tons of insulin because you ate tons of refined carbs (white flour, sugary foods etc.) then complex things happen with your hormones-including hormones that affect your pores. These hormones are your androgens, (like testosterone), and ‘insulin-like growth factor’. They cause your pores to make blackheads and secrete more oil.  They even change what’s in your skin oil, making it more ‘pimple forming’.  Basically, eating refined carbs causes your hormones to go crazy, your pores go crazy and you get zits.

Frankly, it’s an amazing example of how complex the body is.  Who but a scientist could unravel the connection between you eating a douhnut, increasing testosterone and a growth factor, the end result of which is your skin forming blackheads and pimples.

The bottom line: modern teens, and many adults, eat a lot of highly refined/ high glycemic load carbs -and this causes acne.

The solution: eat foods with a lower glycemic index value:

• Eat complex carbs like whole grains (whole wheat flour instead of white, brown rice instead of white etc.)
• Choose sweets with honey or agave, which have lower glycemic index values than refined white sugar
• Grab a piece of refreshing fresh fruit, instead of fruit juice and sugary fruit drinks
• Drink water or sparkling mineral water instead of sugary soft drinks
• Fill up on veggies-all day and all that you want, because they have really low glycemic index values
• Eat moderate amounts of healthy protein including fish, lean meats, tofu, eggs and some dairy

Good guidelines include my Alkaline Mediterranean Diet.

To help you convert to a lower glycemic diet, there are web sites that list the glycemic values of foods. For a more step-by-step guide you could use The South Beach Diet, which is easy to follow.  I’ve done The South Beach Diet before, and I found it balanced and healthy, so long as I ate a lot of veggies when I was on it. It’s a classic example of a low glycemic diet and the book is an easy read.  Lastly, there are apps for your smart phone that give you the glycemic value of foods.

If you’ve been eating a ‘normal’ American diet, then starting to eat more veggies, fruit, lean protein and whole grains will probably help your acne. The added bonus is that these are great foods for your overall health and I’ll bet you feel great too!

So, which snack food should you chose:

OR

Please note that scientists are just beginning to understand the connection between high glycemic foods and acne.   I expect we’ll be getting even more recommendations in the coming years.

Reference: Whitney P. Bowe, MD et. al. Diet and Acne, J of the Am Acad Dermatol 2010;63:124-41

If you found this information helpful, you may want to read:

4 Diet Changes That Can Improve Your Acne; Dermatologist’s Advice

Common Reasons Why Your Acne Treatment Might Not Be Working; new ideas to treat your acne from a dermatologist

Back And Chest Acne; Will They Ruin Your Summer

Natural Skin Health: Dermatologist’s Diet Recommendations for Healthy Skin

Photo Attributions:

Qfamily Greencolander s58

The concept of sun protecting skin isn’t new, and sunscreen isn’t the only way to sun protect.  Across the globe, and across history people have been taking measures to avoid excessive sun exposure. The classic example is the parasol and white gloves of western Victorian women.  Traditional Arab clothing for men still  includes a scarf like head covering and long sleeved one piece garment, both designed for breezy sun protection.  And remember, cowboys wore wide brim hats and long sleeved shirts, and today’s agricultural field workers wear similar hats and shirts.

Improvise! Use what you have and what’s functional for your activities.

A sun umbrella, wide brim hats, breezy long sleeved shirts, long dresses, pants, shawls – they all work.

Wear swim pants and shirts over your bathing suit – they’re not hot when you’re in the water.

Sit under a beach umbrella, in the shade of a tree or patio awning - it helps.

You’ll be cooler and more comfortable.  Hot sun beating down on exposed skin it HOT! Cover up, create shade, minimize direct sun exposure and sunscreen what’s little is left uncovered by clothing.

Every little bit of sun you keep off your skin means fewer wrinkles, age spots and even skin cancers-all good reasons to improvise.

More from Dr. Bailey on sun protection:

5 Steps For Smart Sun Protection

Are Your Summer Clothes Good Enough To Be Sun Protective Clothing?

How To Pick The Best Sunscreen

6 Tricks For Sun Protecting Your Skin In Really Hot Weather

Photo Attribution:

There is mounting scientific evidence that what you eat affects your acne. Knowing what to eat and what foods to avoid can help you get rid of pimples, whether your acne is mild or severe.

The diet/acne connection has been controversial since the 1960s. Scientific studies done in the last 15 years are finally starting to give us answers. People with acne always struggle to figure out which foods worsen their acne, and doctors haven’t been able to give them any guidance until now.

It makes sense that foods play a role in acne but it’s hard to figure this out on your own. That’s because your pimples can take weeks, or even months, to worsen or improve after you make changes in your diet. Knowing what sort of diet you should be eating, and what foods you should be avoiding will help you keep your skin as clear as possible. If you’re using acne treatment medicines or acne skin care products, a good acne diet should also help your acne treatments work better. Many of the dietary recommendations to help your acne are also really healthy for your body overall, so you will most likely feel better and be healthier all around. Most of the studies have been done on teenage acne, but I expect the information applies to adult acne also.

In the July issue of the Journal of the American Academy Of Dermatology there was a scientific paper reviewing all of the modern scientific studies done on the ‘acne and diet’ connection. Based on this most current scientific information, I’ve developed Acne Diet guidelines that I’ll be giving to all my acne patients.

Dermatologist Dr. Cynthia Bailey’s Acne Diet

1. Avoid eating and drinking a lot of high carb foods (white flour/bread/cookies, sugar empty calorie ‘junk’ foods, sugar filled drinks and juices)
2. Eat and drink dairy products in moderation only. Minimize fatty dairy products like ice cream and cheese, instead emphasize cultured dairy products with natural probiotics like yogurt and kefir and whole or low fat dairy products-in moderation.
3. Do eat foods high in omega-3 fatty acids (eg. salmon, flax seeds, walnuts, spinach etc.)
4. Eat tons of fresh fruits and veggies that provide safe sources of antioxidants, zinc, selenium, vitamin A and fiber-all of which appear to help acne. Some of these nutrients are dangerous if taken as supplements because they’re easy to overdose on; don’t use supplements to compensate for a poor diet.

So that yummy hamburger in the photo?  It has a high carb bun, full fat cheese, no omega 3’s,  no fiber and no antioxidants!  It’s a ‘treat’ if you must, but it should not form the basis of your diet if you want to help your acne.

We now know that with acne, like so many other health problems, diet matters. My prediction is that doctors will also find that a healthy acne diet will help acne patients need less acne medicines. This means……

Clearer, healthy looking skin with fewer acne breakouts and less side effects from acne medicines — a dream for people suffering from acne.

If you found this helpful, you may also want to read:

Back And Chest Acne: Will The Ruin Your Summer?

Common Reasons Why Your Acne Treatment Might Not Be Working; New Ideas To Treat Your Acne From A Dermatologist

Natural Skin Health: Dermatologist’s Diet Recommendations For Healthy Skin

Reference:

Whitney P. Bowe, MD et. al. Diet and acne. J Am Acad Dermatol 2010;63:124-41.

Photo by Rick

I just returned from a fabulous 3 weeks touring the hot and humid Southern Mediterranean and had to be pretty creative about keeping the sun off my skin.  As a 50 something, fair skinned dermatologist I know that even a few weeks of sun exposure is going to really age my skin at this point in my life.

My wonderful vacation included touring ancient ruins on treeless hillsides, with the sun beating down from a cloudless sky and reflecting up off marble walls.  It was humid and there was often only a slight breeze to dry the sweat.   I was also on a cruise ship where the ‘culture’ is all about sun bathing. This meant that I had to improvise.  Happily,  I was able to totally enjoy myself, and I’ve returned with no tan line and only a faint darkening in my freckles (age spots).   Here’s the tricks I used:

1. I always applied sunscreen with 5% micro zinc oxide to of my skin that was not covered by a hat or clothing. I reapplied it for swimming and at mid day.
2. I wore a hat almost all the time when outdoors. I have crush-able hats which pack easily and they took good care of me on this trip.
3. I covered as much of my skin as possible with clothing. I kept cool by using light colored, long sleeved linen shirts.  I washed Sun Guard into them for sun protection since light colored linen would normally not provide great sun protection.  (I explain how to do this in a previous post on making your own sun protective clothing).  I wore thicker, but loose and breezy linen or cotton pants and below-the-knee skirts.
4. I wore a rashguard shirt and swim tights over my swim suit if I was going to swim for more than a few minutes.
5. I used a light weight travel umbrella in cities like Rome where there is often enough shade from tall buildings. I’d pop open the umbrella when I couldn’t avoid the sun.  This allowed me to skip the long sleeves and hat, and just rely on sunscreen, the umbrella and shade from buildings.
6. I’d always aim to be in the shade. I’d stand under trees, in the shade of buildings, use deck chairs that were in the shade, ride ferries on shaded areas of their outer decks-anything to be out of the direct sun.

Boy it was hot in the Southern Mediterranean! But, in spite of my hats and clothing, I don’t think I was any hotter than the other tourists who were wearing sleeveless shirts, shorts and bathing suits in the direct sun.  A lot of people were bringing sun damaged skin home as a vacation souvenir, and they could have avoided it with just a little creative sun protection.  Sun screen’s not enough. You have to physically keep the sun rays from hitting your skin by using shade, clothing, hats, and umbrellas.  Mix and match these tricks to suit your activities and the climate-and don’t bring sun damage home as your vacation souvenir.

What sun protection tricks have you found helpful?  I’d love to add your experiences to my own, please send me your stories.

If you found this information helpful, you may also want to read:

5 Steps For Smart Sun Protection

Tanning Addiction; Dermatologist’s Personal Story

How To Apply Sunscreen And Have Healthy, Fabulous Skin Forever

If You Want A Nice Sunburn, Use Last Year’s Sunscreen