What Type Of Damage Can Sun Do To Your Skin?

While the sun is necessary for our skin and overall health, excessive exposure often results in many skin problems. Age spots, which are actually sunspots, blemishes, pigmentation and sunburns are just a few of the sun related damages that your skin may have to face.

Sunscreen is your best friend outdoors!

Sunscreen should be worn at all times whenever you go outdoors. Also, if you plan to be outdoors for too long, then reapply sunscreen from time to time as you may need to replenish the protection for your skin. A sunscreen with an SPF count of 30 or above is usually preferred; however, this could completely be determined by the type of skin.

What type of damage can the sun do to your skin?

Visible sun-related damage to your skin could be any or all of the following:

1. Skin which is patchy
2. Dark spots
3. Uneven skin tone
4. Age spots

These are primarily manifestations of deep-rooted sun-related damage caused by one of the following:

1. Superficial pigmentation: This is a pigmentation problem, which is mostly caused close to the uppermost layer of your skin i.e. the epidermis. 
2. Deep hyper-pigmentation: As opposed to superficial pigmentation, deeper pigmentation problems occur when age-related damage is the cause and there has been prolonged sun exposure. This requires more detailed treatment and thus, topical products such as peels may not be as effective as the damage has been at a deeper layer of the skin.
3. Brown patches or melasma: Often called the mask of pregnancy as it commonly afflicts expectant women, it may occur in other cases due to hormonal problems as well. It appears as darker patches on your skin within the bridge of the nose, cheeks and forehead. Sun damage aggravates this problem and can make a slight or small problem much worse.

Treatments against sun damage

As mentioned earlier, the best way to reverse sun damage is to use the correct sunscreen for your skin. A single SPF rating isn’t correct for everyone and it is best to consult a dermatologist to determine what rating would be correct for you. However, some of the other modern treatments you can rely on to reverse and prevent sun damage could be:

1. Peels that give instant clarity by reducing pigmentation
2. Reducing complexes such as certain liquid applicants that lessen topical pigmentation
3. Skin rejuvenating lasers that provide instant clarity with laser action
4. PRP or platelet-rich plasma that is derived from the cells of your own body and then used as a serum to be injected into the skin to heighten its self- healing powers.