Monday, October 12, 2020

Are Your Freckles A Sign Of Sun Damage

Sun damage affects all ages but those over 30’s suffer more and the symptoms of damage increasingly show with age. Most of us have suffered at least one sunburn in our lives but once healed it’s typically forgotten and normally the mistakes that led to the sunburn are repeated over the years. According to a study carried out by Clinical, Cosmetic and Investigational Dermatology the effect of UV exposure increases with age and UV exposure is responsible for 80% of visible facial ageing. Sun damage is cumulative and begins at a young age. The common effects you see include redness, itching, peeling - and in more extreme cases blisters on the skin which all lead to what's known as photo-ageing (“photo” - sunlight; “ageing” - deterioration). 


Deferred Damage

Young people can't usually see the hidden effects of long term sun damage so they ignore the risks. The Long term effects of photo deterioration often appear 20 to 30 years after sun damage first occurs according to Dr Kenneth Fields. So its important that young people educate themselves on ways to reduce sun damage. It’s no myth that wearing sunscreen every day will dramatically reduce signs of ageing and more serious skin damage. It’s true that it doesn’t matter what season it is or what the weather is like, harmful ultraviolet rays are always abundant. UV radiation will penetrate clouds - making it just as important to wear sunscreen on cloudy days as it is during the summer months. 

The Harsh Reality

It’s unfortunate that by the time most people experience skin cancer and precancerous the DNA of the cells are too damaged to reverse without medical help. I read an incredibly inspiring patient story that was featured on Melanoma UK. The protagonist describes herself as being a fair skinned redhead, who’s parents religiously kept her covered up as they knew she was likely to burn. Her early sign of skin damage appeared as small freckle on the top of her left foot. 

It’s interesting how freckles have becoming one of this years top beauty trends. You see a lot of people on social media enhancing their natural freckles and have even introduced drawing them on as part of the “daily makeup routine”. According to Harpers Bazaar Freckles are having their moment in the sun, and it’s about time. I think its fair to say freckles are a genetic blessing for people like Jade Burt. Freckles are in fashion! Influencers like Hailey Bieber and Ashley Graham are often posting make-up free selfies on social media, whilst hashtags like #frecklesfordays and #frecklesganag are flooding the social media scene. 

It’s important to note that freckles are usually nothing to worry about, but you do have to make sure those freckles don’t change - freckles might be in fashion but skin damage definitely is not. 



The lady who shared her story goes on to say that ‘over time the freckle that she had noticed slowly started to change shape’. Despite this she still felt as though it was just a little freckle and there was no rush to go to the doctor. 

She says that she often asks herself if she had found a lump on her breast would she have rushed to make an appointment straight away. Most people would make an appointment if they found a lump on their breast, but not if they found a small freckle. 

The freckle transformed overnight, quickly doubling in size to what she could only describe as a ‘boil type thing that was oozing nastiness’. She goes onto say that ‘she still didn't suspect it could be skin cancer’.

Despite getting the growth removed she was diagnosed with aggressive Melanoma. Her reactions was “this is skin cancer, its not like I have real cancer!” The melanoma was 4mm in depth which sounded tiny to her, but it was large enough to result in lymph node removal, leaving her with what she describes as a tube attached to a pint size bottle that was collecting the lymph fluid from her leg. After numerous assessments and examination her future is very unknown. 


The patient says the real damage may have been caused when trying to get a healthy glow in the sun & in sun-beds during her teens and early 20’s. 

The message she wants readers to take from her story is to protect your skin. She wants people to know that sunburn is not funny and although tan lines maybe the sign of a good holiday they are not the sign of a good future. 

The Good News

The good news is that most conditions are treatable, especially if caught early and monitored by a dermatologists. 

The goal is to make people of all ages understand how to take care of their skin, we have the resources to educate & the products to protect. It’s never too early to put your skins health first. 

If your looking to defend your skin and supercharge your body’s repair mechanisms to give you lifelong benefits, whilst producing a dark tan with minimal UV exposure then the Nutri-Tan nutrition based tanning system is for you.


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2 comments

  1. A serious message. Enjoy your time in the sun but never ever allow yourself to burn. I learned tge hard way.

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