Sunlight is an essential component of vitamin D production in the body; unfortunately, spending too much time in the sun can expose your skin to harmful levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, possible leading to skin damage. Sun damage typically manifests itself as areas of solar lentigos, age spots, freckles and wrinkles. Depending on how severe the sun damage is, there are several treatment options available to fix these skin changes.
Step 1
Apply a retinoid cream to the sun-affected area. Retinoid creams, such as tretinoin, accelerate the rate in which skin cells shed and are replaced. Over time, the shedding of sun-affected skin cells can reduce the prominence of sun damage. According to the Mayo Clinic, retinoids may also be combined with bleaching creams, such as hydroquinone, to speed up the process.
Step 2
Schedule a chemical peel. Chemical peels can be performed by your dermatologist or, in some cases, an aesthetician. Chemical peels use specialized chemicals, such as phenol, alpha hydroxy acids or beta hydroxy acids, to peel the outermost layer of skin off the sun-affected area. By peeling off the outer layer of skin cells, new skin is revealed, lessening the prominence of the sun damage.
Step 3
Schedule a skin resurfacing treatment. Skin resurfacing methods, such as dermabrasion and microdermabrasion, use abrasive materials to scrub off the outer layers of dead skin cells and smooth rough patches of sun-damaged skin. Dermabrasion is more abrasive because it uses a rotary instrument with an abrasive wheel to sand down the skin. Microdermabrasion uses a wand-like tool to project abrasive aluminum or zinc oxide crystals at the skin, followed by a vacuum device to suck the loosened skin cells off the treatment area.
Step 4
Talk to your doctor about laser treatment options. Laser treatments are a newer introduction to the skin treatment market and work similarly to a chemical peel. Laser resurfacing tools are specifically calibrated to project energy at the outer layer of skin, vaporizing the sun-damaged area on contact. This reveals the new skin cells beneath, reducing the prominence of everything from sun spots to wrinkles.
Step 5
Use dermal fillers for wrinkles caused by sun damage (photoaging). Photoaging damages the collagen and elastin in your skin resulting in premature wrinkle formation. To combat sun wrinkles, dermal fillers (such as collagen and hyaluronic acid) can be injected into the sun-damaged areas of the skin. This replaces collagen and plumps up the wrinkles, making them even with the surrounding skin tissue.
