What Causes Skin Age Spots?
You might say that age spots are caused by aging and exposure to ultraviolet or UV radiation from the sun.
Or you might say they are caused by the formation of melanin clumps.
You might call it a liver spot, a senile freckle or a solar lentigo.
Whatever you call it, you might be pleased to know that it is not caused by liver damage.
Nor is it a sign of skin cancer.
Let's look at some causes of "Age Spots", then let's learn How to Get Rid of Skin Age Spots.
In some rare cases, the heavily pigmented areas have been known to prevent the early detection of a skin cancer.
But ultimately, the spot poses no threat to your health.
However, it can be a sign that you have not done everything you can to protect your skin's health.
The Skin's Job Your skin is an organ, an integral part of the body's immune system.
One of its primary services is to protect the inside of the body from illness, injury and UV radiation.
It also serves to create the vitamin D necessary for the health of your entire body, assuming you get moderate amounts of sunlight.
Dermatologists have begun to suggest that you expose your arms and legs to the sun for 10 minutes or so per day in order to meet your body's vitamin D requirements.
But, they suggest that you protect your face from sunlight in order to reduce your risk of liver spots, wrinkles and other visible signs of aging.
A senile freckle will not appear on areas of the body that are never or infrequently exposed to sunlight.
This is what made doctors first aware that sun exposure was the underlying cause.
By the same token, you will see few (if any) wrinkles on the underside of your arm or on other areas that are not exposed to sunlight.
But, what is it about sunlight that causes age spots and other signs of aging.
It has only been in recent years that researchers were able to observe the responsible molecular activity going on within the skin.
Molecules referred to as free radicals are naturally present within the skin's layers.
Under ordinary circumstances, these molecules are not damaging to the cells, fibers or DNA strands.
But when exposed to ultraviolet radiation, the molecules behave strangely.
They start to damage skin cell membranes by robbing them of electrons.
They can eventually damage the skin's fibers and cellular DNA in the same way.
The melanin present in liver spots and in tanned skin helps to prevent some of this by converting UV radiation into harmless heat.
There are also a number of naturally occurring antioxidants (like coenzyme Q10, glutathione and superoxide dismutase) in the skin's cells that neutralize the free radicals by voluntarily giving up one of their own electrons.
Another Problem In just the last few years, researchers have discovered another problem.
Older skin contains more free radical molecules and fewer antioxidant molecules.
In addition, the skin's coenzyme Q10 is quickly depleted during sun exposure.
What You Can Do All of these things could contribute to the formation of age spots.
No one really knows exactly how they form.
But, they do know how to get rid of them and prevent them from returning.
You'll learn about that in my next article on How to Get Rid of Skin Age Spots.
See the author/resource box for the article on How to Get Rid of Age Spots.
Or you might say they are caused by the formation of melanin clumps.
You might call it a liver spot, a senile freckle or a solar lentigo.
Whatever you call it, you might be pleased to know that it is not caused by liver damage.
Nor is it a sign of skin cancer.
Let's look at some causes of "Age Spots", then let's learn How to Get Rid of Skin Age Spots.
In some rare cases, the heavily pigmented areas have been known to prevent the early detection of a skin cancer.
But ultimately, the spot poses no threat to your health.
However, it can be a sign that you have not done everything you can to protect your skin's health.
The Skin's Job Your skin is an organ, an integral part of the body's immune system.
One of its primary services is to protect the inside of the body from illness, injury and UV radiation.
It also serves to create the vitamin D necessary for the health of your entire body, assuming you get moderate amounts of sunlight.
Dermatologists have begun to suggest that you expose your arms and legs to the sun for 10 minutes or so per day in order to meet your body's vitamin D requirements.
But, they suggest that you protect your face from sunlight in order to reduce your risk of liver spots, wrinkles and other visible signs of aging.
A senile freckle will not appear on areas of the body that are never or infrequently exposed to sunlight.
This is what made doctors first aware that sun exposure was the underlying cause.
By the same token, you will see few (if any) wrinkles on the underside of your arm or on other areas that are not exposed to sunlight.
But, what is it about sunlight that causes age spots and other signs of aging.
It has only been in recent years that researchers were able to observe the responsible molecular activity going on within the skin.
Molecules referred to as free radicals are naturally present within the skin's layers.
Under ordinary circumstances, these molecules are not damaging to the cells, fibers or DNA strands.
But when exposed to ultraviolet radiation, the molecules behave strangely.
They start to damage skin cell membranes by robbing them of electrons.
They can eventually damage the skin's fibers and cellular DNA in the same way.
The melanin present in liver spots and in tanned skin helps to prevent some of this by converting UV radiation into harmless heat.
There are also a number of naturally occurring antioxidants (like coenzyme Q10, glutathione and superoxide dismutase) in the skin's cells that neutralize the free radicals by voluntarily giving up one of their own electrons.
Another Problem In just the last few years, researchers have discovered another problem.
Older skin contains more free radical molecules and fewer antioxidant molecules.
In addition, the skin's coenzyme Q10 is quickly depleted during sun exposure.
What You Can Do All of these things could contribute to the formation of age spots.
No one really knows exactly how they form.
But, they do know how to get rid of them and prevent them from returning.
You'll learn about that in my next article on How to Get Rid of Skin Age Spots.
See the author/resource box for the article on How to Get Rid of Age Spots.
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