Effective strategies for achieving and maintaining bright, youthful-looking skin

If you spend your weekends in the sun (or even just the brief walk from your car to the grocery store), you could be more susceptible to hyperpigmentation, sunspots, or other symptoms of sun damage. Sun damage can appear anywhere, but we tend to notice it first when it appears on our face, chest and/or hands. Thankfully, advanced, non-surgical aesthetics has given us solutions that can eliminate and even reverse sun damage. Combining these solutions with good self-care and preventative habits are key to maintaining skin health.

Here are RejuvenationMD’s top 6 ways to eliminate (and even reverse) sun damage!

Strategy #1: Wear sunscreen EVERY DAY, ALL YEAR LONG.

Wear a physical sunscreen with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide. Ideally, it should be broad spectrum and mineral-based with a minimum of SPF 30 to ensure protection from both UVA and UVB rays. Apply sunscreen 20 minutes before you’ll be in the sun. Reapply every 90 minutes and don’t forget easy-to-miss places like your ears, lips, neck and scalp (if you’re balding). Any area of exposed skin should be protected.

Did you know you can get sun damage indoors too?

It’s easy to feel protected from harmful UV rays once you’re at home or inside the office. However, if you’re sitting in front of a bright window or under a skylight, UVA rays can still cause damage to your skin. Wearing sunscreen indoors is the best way to ensure you’re protected no matter where you are.

Likewise, you’re at risk when you’re in the car. Front car windows block some UVA rays, but side windows don’t. The majority of the patients we see have more sun damage on the driver’s side of their faces. Studies show that UV protective films can reduce UVA transmission by more than 99%. You can add a protective film to your window that filters out UVA rays. Check your local and state laws first since some areas restrict window tints.

Takeaway? Make sunscreen part of your daily routine and reapply throughout the day whether you’re headed to the park, to the office, or to the grocery store.

Strategy #2: Eat skin-loving foods.

There’s no shortage of opinions when it comes to determining the best foods for healthy skin. While there’s no “one-diet-fits-all” secret, here are 6 skin-loving foods to add to your grocery cart the next time you’re at the store:

  • Foods rich in Omega-3s– There’s evidence that eating foods rich Omega-3s may reduce sensitivity to ultraviolet rays. Fish like sardines, anchovies, salmon and many plant-based foods such as flaxseed oil, chia seeds, walnuts, walnut oil and canola oil are great foods to add to your diet.
  • Eat antioxidant and vitamin-rich foods like blueberries, kale, spinach, pomegranate, and dark chocolate (real dark chocolate). Antioxidants are powerful defenders against free radicals which cause cellular degeneration.
  • Foods with lycopene can help reduce skin inflammation. Tomatoes in particular are rich in lycopene.
  • Choose foods rich in vitamin C such as oranges, grapefruit, red bell peppers, broccoli, strawberries, kiwi and more, which can help to reduce oxidative stress and neutralize free radicals.
  • Vitamin E plays an important role in photo protection. Snacking on almonds and/or sunflower seeds are excellent ways to get in a dose of vitamin E.
  • Polyphenols decrease the damaging effects of UVA and UVB rays. Moderate amounts of tea and coffee, red wine, grapes, and dark chocolate are some of our favorite options. (Dark chocolate for the win on this grocery list!).

Strategy #3: Get at least one Halo Laser treatment each year.

No matter how well we eat or how consistently we use sunscreen, skin damage happens. However, advanced treatments like Halo™ Pro Fractional Laser can help erase that damage. The Halo laser uses two wavelengths to treat pigmentation and correct lines and wrinkles. It’s a simple in-office treatment that can be personalized to treat YOUR skin conditions like uneven skin tone & texture, fine lines, melasma, hyperpigmentation, pore size, skin laxity and more. Have you heard of the “Halo Glow”? Halo Laser treatments generate new collagen, giving patients glowing skin. Treatment takes about 60 to 90 minutes depending on the treatment area. It’s comfortable and there’s minimal downtime.

Strategy #4: Schedule a Forever Young BBL™ treatment once a quarter! BBL targets sun damage at the molecular level to turn off, and even reverse the age expression in genes.

“Reversing age expression” would have been unheard-of a few years ago. Forever Young Broad-Band Light (BBL) is considered the “Ferrari” of Intense Pulse Light (IPL) treatments. It targets signs of aging like brown spots, sun damage, redness, small vessels, port wine stains and more. It’s clinically proven to restore the gene expression pattern in older skin to resemble younger skin. Treatments are about 60 minutes depending on the treatment area. Treatment is comfortable and there is minimal social downtime, if any.

Strategy #5: Introduce VI Chemical Peels into your skin care plan to reduce hyperpigmentation and to help improve skin’s tone and texture.

VI Peels are a moderate-depth chemical peel that can immediately improve your skin and diminish signs of hyperpigmentation and even melasma. They’re ideal for those with acne, uneven skin texture or skin tone, fine lines and wrinkles, acne scarring, sun spots, enlarged pores and hyperpigmentation.

Strategy #6: Take care of your skin every morning & evening.

A good at-home skin care regimen, is the foundation for healthy skin. It’s important to note that investing in medical-grade skin care is highly worth the sacrifice of a few trips to Starbucks. Medical-grade skin care is clinically proven to do what it claims because the products are under strict FDA oversight. Over-the-counter skin care products, however, do not have the same testing requirements and they can contain ingredients that can actually harm the skin.

The steps you take to care for your skin will be unique to your skin type, but you should have an established morning and evening routine to cleanse, exfoliate, hydrate and protect your skin.

Schedule a complimentary consultation with RejuvenationMD’s skin care experts.

Starting with a good skin care regimen, using sunscreen every day, drinking the right amount of water for your body each day and eating skin-loving foods is a great start to improving your skin’s health. To minimize (and even reverse) sun damage requires a complimentary consultation to discuss your goals, because every body is different. That’s why our team of aesthetic experts is here to get you on the right plan and help you rock healthy, glowing skin all year long!

RejuvenationMD Aesthetic Skin Treatment and Wellness Center is the premier non-surgical aesthetics practice in Washington’s North Sound. Home to 3 physicians, registered nurses, an ARNP and a team of experienced master estheticians. Learn more by visiting www.RejuvenationMDMedSpa.com. Have questions? Drop us a note at info@rejuvenationmdmedspa.com or call 360-982-2620.