Age Spots & Liver Spots
How are age spots caused and how can they be treated? What can you do to protect your skin from age spots?
These brown/black spots are usually flat and appear on the areas that are frequently exposed to the sun such as the face, arms, hands and neck.
Main causes:
Age spots or liver spots are basically the color change of skin and older skin mostly gets affected by these spots. These changes are caused mainly by aging, direct sun exposure and the UV rays produced by the sun, in few cases genetics also contribute to the appearance of age spots. Usually they appear at the age of 40 onwards.
Symptoms:
The symptoms related to age spots are:
- A color change in certain small flat area of skin
- Initial light brown which later turn darker
- On the skin surface of hands, arms and face
- Cause you no pain
- Age spots are not raised
Basically the liver spots are not dangerous according to dermatologists. These are just like permanent kind of change in skin due to build up of skin pigment melanin. Because of this change the confidence can be affected. Age spots cause you no pain but do affect the appearance as well as developing a feeling of great worry or unhappiness. So, emotionally you become affected.
Exams and tests:
The appearance or outlook of your skin will need to be seen by a skin specialist to diagnose the actual problem. If you are over the age of 40, and over the years have been regularly exposed to the suns UV rays, such kind of liver spots can appear having an irregular look, either shape, color or border. In such cases you will need tests such as biopsy, because if the condition is severe it may become skin cancer.
Treatment:
In many cases there is no need for any kind of treatment. You can remove age spots just by using good quality cosmetic lotions and creams. For some conditions laser treatment or cryotherapy is recommended to remove the liver or age spots. Some other methods are also available for the treatment of age spots such as dermabrasion, chemical skin peels, and bleaching. The treatments may be little expensive or painful but can improve the appearance of your skin – safely.
Ways to prevent age spots and liver spots:
- Cover up by wearing protective clothes such as full sleeves shirts, hats and long skirts or trousers
- Use sunglasses
- Keep yourself away from direct sun exposure
- Use good quality sunscreen with UVA and UVB protection
