The 411 On Sun Damage: Part Two

PART TWO Welcome back to Part Two of the 411 On Sun Damage! If you missed last week’s article, we talked about all of the ways you can prevent sun damage. However, most of us have at least a little…and some of us have a lot. (Excuse my while I hang my head in shame.) Here’s what you can do to help repair the skin: 1. Use the steps listed last week to prevent even more sun damage. 2. For specifically sunborn-freckles (sun damage in disguise), skin discoloration (patches of brown, for example), and just a generally uneven skin color, consider IPL treatments. It’s possible to just do a spot treatment, or the entire face. I’m going to include a photo below of one of the treatments we did that was so close to miraculous I almost wept. Seriously, y’all. IPL can do amazing things. For those of you who don’t know, IPL is Intense Pulse Light (a laser), and it works by targeting pigment differences in the skin. 3. For sun damage that includes issues like fine lines and wrinkles, as well as sun spots, consider getting a Fractional treatment. Some of you may recognize this as “Fraxel”, but since we use use a Venus Viva Fractional laser at Infinity, I’m trained to say Fractional and that’s what I’m going to do. Moving on. Fractional is basically a “head” or a “tip” that has a bunch of needles grouped together. The button is pressed, those needles go into the skin, and you get a solid dose of radio frequency (heat) that tells your skin “SOS! Repair! Send collagen!”. Which is precisely what your skin does. Generally three treatment are all you need to start out with. Fractional won’t target pigment the same way IPL will, but it also works on more issues, and since usually sun damage = wrinkles, it’s great that it can treat everything at once. FYI, it also helps with enlarged pores and overall skin texture, in case those are also concerns. 4. If you’d prefer to stay away from lasers, consider a medical grade peel. A peel is basically asking your skin to fall off at a faster than normal rate, and as the skin sheds, all of the sun damage will start to fall off, too. Peels, in my experience, don’t work as quickly or efficiently as laser treatments. But, they can be equally as effective with time and dedication. 5. Make sure your skincare routine supports cellular repair and collagen production, amongst other things. A great skincare routine can work wonders, especially in conjunction with other treatments. Skincare is your daily tool. Lasers and peels are fantastic, but it comes down to what you do at home that’s going to make the biggest difference. If you don’t know what kind of skincare products you should be using, go to an esthetician and get their recommendations. Some great skincare lines are: Eminence Organics, Lira Clinical, SkinMedica, Image Skincare, Herbivore Botanicals, ZO Skin Health, and One Love Organics, amongst others. Some great makeup/sunscreen combo lines are: Eminence Organics, Lira Clinical, ColorScience, and Jane Iredale. It’s important to follow recommendations from your esthetician or dermatologist, but I’ll also list some products that help with sun damage. These are: Retinol products, hydroquinone (you have to have physician approval for this), and AHA/BHA products (to help the skin exfoliate properly). Keeping the skin hydrated by drinking plenty of water and applying good products, such as those containing hyaluronic acid, will also keep the skin looking soft and dewy, in the meantime. Some last considerations: -Everything I listed may sound overwhelming, but it breaks down to this: drink water, use good skincare products, see an esthetician, get a laser treatment (or a few), wear a hat, and reapply sunscreen as much as you can. -When you’re out in the sun, enjoy yourself! The sun has great qualities. Many people suffer from vitamin D deficiency, and the sun can help with that. It also has the ability to lift the mood, and even help acne. So don’t be afraid of it. Treat it like a piece of chocolate: full of good things, like magnesium and iron, but also sometimes full of sugar, so moderation is key. Remember that life is a balance! You don’t have to be a hermit in a cave in order to have beautiful skin. And it wouldn’t be worth it, would it? So go to Hawaii, and enjoy laying on the beach–just bring you sunscreen with you.

The author of this blog, Layla Hanson, is a writer and project manager for Infinity Aesthetics, specializing in holistic media production. You can see her popping in and out of the office from time to time to snap photos for our Instagram and website. Feel free to say hi and offer to pose for a picture!