MORE: The Crazy Way Your Skin Changes In Your 30s, 40s, 50s, And Beyond Sunlight contains ultraviolet (UV) rays that cause suntans and sunburns. As time goes by, this sun damage causes excess pigment to deposit in the skin, which eventually leads to the flat, brown, skin freckles known as age spots, liver spots, or sun spots. No matter what they’re called, they’re unsightly. And, if they change in size, they may indicate skin cancer, which is why it’s a good idea to have a dermatologist examine your skin at least once a year. Assuming they are indeed age spots, here are some tips on concealing and fading them (as well as preventing more). Lighten Up If your age spots aren’t too big or too dark, over-the-counter bleaching agents could help fade them, Kunin says. Look for products such as Porcelana and Palmer’s Skin Success Cream, which contain 2% hydroquinone, the best-known active ingredient used in many types of bleaching agents. Hydroquinone lightens age spots until they become less noticeable or even disappear. It works best with a glycolic acid moisturizer, like Neutrogena Pore Refining Cream or Alpha Hydrox Enhanced Creme, which smooths the skin. Apply the bleaching agent twice a day to your sun spots, carefully following the manufacturer’s directions. Dab the cream directly onto the age spots with a cotton swab so that you don’t bleach the pigment in unaffected areas. “Be patient,” says Kunin. “You won’t see results overnight. These lightening agents often take 6 to 12 months to do the job.” Stop the treatment when the age spots disappear, or the affected area may become lighter than your normal skin tone. Want a more natural approach? Some plant extracts, such as aloe, flavonoids, licorice, yeast derivatives, and polyphenols can lighten the skin when applied topically.
Slather On Sunscreen
Even if you already have age spots, sunscreen keeps existing ones from darkening and helps prevent more from popping up, says Kunin. Buy a broad-spectrum sunblock (which protects you from both the UVA and UVB rays of the sun) with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30. Apply it to exposed skin 10 to 15 minutes before you go outside, says C. Ralph Daniel III, MD. Tests show that SPF 30 sunblock protects the skin against about 93% of the sun’s UV rays, he says. MORE: How Much Vitamin D Do You Really Need? Be sure to use sunblock whenever you’re planning to be outdoors for more than 10 to 15 minutes, whether you’ll be on the golf course, tennis court, or ski slope. It’s especially important if you spend a lot of time on a boat or at the beach, because the sun’s rays reflect off the water. Remember, too, to reapply sunscreen frequently, because perspiration and water can wash it off. Experts suggest using enough sunscreen to fill a shot glass every time you slather up. Daniel recommends Neutrogena #70. “It’s water resistant and not greasy,” he says. (Make sure to avoid these common sunscreen mistakes.)
Cover Your Head
Whether you’re heading to the beach or spending extended time in the midday sun, wear a hat with at least a 4-inch-wide brim to keep the sun off your face and neck, and stop yourself from getting age spots on your face. Daniel’s favorite: Tilley Hats. Baseball caps, assuming they’re worn with the bill in front, don’t protect your ears, the back of your neck, or even most of your face from full sun, says Kunin. Straw hats don’t usually offer much protection either. If the hats are unlined and loosely woven, the sun shines directly through them. “Choose a hat with an extra-long bill and sun-protective cloth inside,” says Kunin. “It will give you more protection and help limit your chances of developing age spots.”
Protect Your Lips
Most people don’t think about their lips when it comes to sun protection. But age spots can show up there, too. Many women believe that their lipstick will protect them. The sun, however, can penetrate many lighter shades, and lipstick typically wears off throughout the day, leaving the lips naked and unprotected. Apply either a lip balm or lipstick with an SPF of 15 to 30 before you head outside. Kunin recommends Neutrogena Lip Moisturizer SPF 15. If you still want to wear your favorite non-SPF lipstick, apply it over a layer of the protective balm. MORE: 5 Things Your Lips Say About Your Health
Shun The Sun
Since these brown blotches are caused by the sun’s UV rays, limiting sun exposure is an important first step in the battle against age spots. “Avoid the sun as much as possible during peak hours (10 AM to 4 PM during spring, summer, and fall or 10 AM to 2 PM during winter), when the ultraviolet radiation is the strongest,” says Kunin. If you have to do outdoor chores like gardening, perform them early in the morning or in the evening. And remember that sunblock is needed even during winter months and on cloudy days.
Take A Break In The Shade
Excessive sun exposure causes age spots, so periodically retreat to a shady place on sunny days. At the beach or a backyard barbecue, park yourself under a big umbrella. “It sounds simple, but protecting yourself with sunblock and staying out of the sun are the two best ways to keep new age spots from forming,” says Kunin. Also, whenever you’re in the sun, wear tightly woven, light-colored clothing if it’s not too hot outside. It helps keep UV rays from penetrating your skin.
Cover Up The Spot
If the other at-home remedies don’t do the trick and you don’t want to spend the money on a dermatologist-administered chemical peel or a laser resurfacing treatment, you can always reach into your cosmetics bag. “Brown age spots can be hidden by applying a cream-based or water-based concealer,” says Kunin. (Here’s the secret to making a concealer work for you.) Pick a lighter version of your skin tone to best hide age spots.
Use Lemon
Cut a few lemon slices and place them directly onto your age spots for 10 to 15 minutes once a day, suggests Kunin. “The acid in the fresh lemon juice helps lighten the age spots in some cases.” It won’t happen overnight, though. Kunin says that you’ll notice a difference in 6 to 12 weeks. Watch carefully. Overuse may cause the upper layer of skin to peel. MORE: 20 Home Remedies That Work
Try Wart Stick
There is a wart-remover product called Wart Stick that contains 40% salicylic acid, which is also the beta hydroxy acid that doctors use to treat wrinkles. “Because the stick allows you to concentrate on one specific spot or area to treat, I got the idea to use the Wart Stick for people who have brown spots, dark circles, and roughened areas of the skin,” explains Nelson Lee Novick, MD. “It’s convenient, it doesn’t run, and it works.” He recommends applying it at bedtime. It may take 8 to 12 months to see results. Wart Stick is available at drugstores and online.
Prescription-Strength Help To Fade Age Spots
For especially stubborn age spots that have been given the all-clear by your dermatologist, a prescription-strength fade cream with 4% hydroquinone could be your first course of action. “Rub it on twice a day for 21 to 28 days, and you may see marked improvement,” says Daniel. For a stronger, quicker bleaching effect, some doctors prescribe vitamin A creams such as tretinoin (Retin-A and Renova) along with prescription-strength hydroquinone. Some studies involving laboratory animals have raised questions about the safety of hydroquinone—specifically, whether it might contribute to cancer. To date, no such link has been identified in humans, and doctors continue to prescribe hydroquinone to patients. Still, you should talk with your doctor about the benefits and risks, based on your own health history. MORE: 21 Crazy Things Your Dermatologist Has Seen If creams fail to do the trick, your doctor has several treatment options at his disposal to make age spots disappear, says Daniel. For instance, your doctor can freeze them with liquid nitrogen. After a few weeks, the spots peel off. “This is a highly effective procedure for many benign age spots,” he says. A second treatment procedure is a chemical peel—done with trichloroacetic acid (TCA) or glycolic acid. These treatments can be quite effective for all body areas but may cause scarring and whitening of the skin if not done properly. The upper layer of affected skin takes 2 to 3 days to peel from your face or 5 to 7 days from your arms and chest. A third, and much more expensive, procedure (average cost ranges between $1,750 and $2,300 depending on how large an area is treated) is laser resurfacing. During this procedure, the doctor uses pulses of laser light to fade the spots. The laser resurfacing procedure can take a half hour to an hour to perform and 2 to 6 weeks to heal. “A generally less expensive and quicker procedure than lasers is a relatively new technique known as Collagen Induction Therapy (CIT) or more simply microneedling,” says Novick. “The procedure takes only about 5-10 minutes to perform and has little or no downtime; most people return to work or social activities immediately afterward.” Four to six treatments, spaced at 4 to 6 week intervals, are generally required for optimal lightening. Treatment costs may range between $350 and $600 per session, depending upon the number and location of the age spots.
When To Visit A Doctor
If your age spots don’t respond to home remedies, or if you have an age spot that bleeds, itches, tingles, or changes in size or color, it’s time to see your doctor. Some skin cancers, such as melanoma, can look like age spots.
Panel Of Advisors
C. Ralph Daniel III, MD, is a clinical professor of dermatology at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and clinical associate professor of dermatology at the University of Alabama in Birmingham. Audrey Kunin, MD, is a cosmetic dermatologist in Kansas City, Missouri, the founder of the dermatology education website DERMAdoctor, and the author of The DermaDoctor SkinStruction Manual. Nelson Lee Novick, MD, is a clinical professor of dermatology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City.
