Age spots are a common concern as we age. While they are typically harmless, they can be a source of frustration for those seeking to maintain youthful-looking skin. It’s crucial to distinguish age spots from more serious skin conditions like melanoma, which can have life-threatening consequences.
Age spots are also called liver spots, aging spots, sunspots, lentigo senilis, old age spots, senile freckles, senile lentigo, or solar lentigines. They are small, flat, darker areas of the skin. You’ll see age spots mostly on areas exposed to sunlight, like the hands, face, shoulders, upper back, and arms. They’re often irregular in shape and vary in size, and they’re common in adults over 50 (R). Unlike freckles, which are common in children, they do not fade when there is no sun exposure (R). In this article, we’ll look at causes of age spots and offer solutions for treatment and prevention.
Age Spots Versus Skin Cancer (Melanoma)
Age spots are harmless. For that reason, it’s important not to confuse age spots with skin cancer like melanoma. Warning signs of melanoma include spots with irregular borders, growing size, and varying colors or uneven color patterns (R).
If you have had regular or strong bouts of sun exposure, you have an increased risk of skin cancer. So, it’s important to get checked regularly at the dermatologist. If an age spot looks suspicious, it is always safer to get it checked out. Early melanoma can resemble age spots to the untrained eye.
Take the NOVOS FaceAge Test – Free
Utilizes artificial intelligence to measure your facial age and skin health visually. We’ll give you your seven scores and provide actionable tips on how to improve them.
Join our NOVOS community today to be #YoungerForLonger!
What Causes Age Spots?
Many people think that age spots develop simply due to over-exposure to sunlight. Sunlight plays an important role, and sunburns can predispose you to age spots, but is only part of the story.
In general, sunlight is very damaging to the skin. Even a short exposure to sunlight damages the DNA in the cell nucleus of our skin cells.
Responding to this DNA damage, skin cells “build” a protective shield around the nucleus to protect it from further damage by UV light. Melanin, a brownish pigment molecule, makes up this shield. This causes our skin to look tanned.
In simple terms, achieving a “healthy tan” is actually quite unhealthy. When you tan, it’s a result of significant DNA damage occurring in your cell nucleus.
Why Are Most Age Spots on My Face and Hands?
Fortunately, our cells repair most DNA damage, but not all of it. Over time, unrepaired damage adds up, especially in people with frequent sun exposure, leading to older-looking, sun-damaged skin.
Thus, age spots form when melanin production goes into overdrive. The pigment builds up and clumps together, and cells can no longer clear it out. These spots can appear anywhere, but they’re most common on the face and hands, and to a lesser extent, the forearms and shoulders — areas more exposed than the rest of the body.
The Aging Processes Behind Sun Spots
Specific aging processes also play an important role in age spot development, explaining why age spots become so much more prevalent in elderly people compared to young people (R). One way aging exacerbates the occurrence of age spots is through an important aging mechanism, called “senescent cells,” which arise everywhere in the skin.
Senescent cells are “zombie” cells that stop dividing but keep living on. Senescent cells arise because of too much damage (e.g., caused by the sun, or by aging). They secrete substances that damage healthy surrounding cells. This causes us to age (R,R,R). Senescent cells in the blood vessels damage the blood vessels, senescent cells in the liver harm the healthy liver cells, and senescent cells in the skin damage the skin, making it thinner and more wrinkly and causing age spots.
Senescent keratinocytes (skin cells), and even senescent fibroblasts in the deeper skin layers, secrete substances that upregulate melanin production, which greatly contributes to age spots. So, sun damage isn’t the only cause of age spots — the aging process itself makes skin more likely to develop them.
Can I Remove Age Spots?
It’s not easy to get rid of age spots. Certain treatments can completely remove them (see further down), but this is successful in less than 50% of people.
Bleaching creams containing hydroquinone may work to remove age spots. However, hydroquinone can irritate the skin and can even cause post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, especially in people with naturally darker skin. There are various other treatments to prevent age spots, or make their appearance less noticeable. Keep in mind that it can often take many months to start to see a difference.
Age Spot Removal Techniques
- Tretinoin cream: Tretinoin (a derivative of vitamin A) skin creams can improve the appearance of age spots.
- High-dose vitamin C cream: High-dose vitamin C creams, sometimes combined with kojic acid (a gentle skin peeler), can also reduce age spots. It’s important that the vitamin C cream is at least 10% to 20% vitamin C.
- Niacinamide cream: Niacinamide creams could also decrease aging pigments (R).
- Azelaic acid cream: Azelaic acid can also reduce pigmentation of the skin. Often, it takes many months to see an effect. Interestingly, azelaic acid could perhaps also reduce senescent cells in the skin.
- Laser therapy or pulsed light treatment: Laser light has specific frequencies, destroying the clumpy brownish melanin that forms the age spots, but leaving other cells intact.
- Dermabrasion: This approach involves sharp tools removing the outer layer of skin. The skin starts to heal itself, which can lead to reduced or removed age spots. It takes several months for the skin to heal and to see an effect.
- Microdermabrasion: Microdermabrasion is a “lighter” version of dermabrasion. Instead of sharp tools, tiny particles sand away the upper skin layers. It can sometimes work for mild age spots.
- Chemical peels: Chemical peels are somewhat similar to dermabrasion. Instead of removing and damaging the outer layers of the skin with sharp tools, the process uses chemicals. It can take several months for the skin to properly heal itself.
- Hydrogen peroxide: Sometimes, people may use hydrogen peroxide to remove age spots. Hydrogen peroxide is a strong free radical, causing oxidative damage not only to the age spots but also to surrounding healthy cells. We don’t recommend using this approach.
Dermabrasion, chemical peels, and cryosurgery can sometimes do more damage than good, causing scarring, darker or lighter spots on the skin, and disappointing results.
How Can I Prevent Age Spots?
Protection against the sun is paramount to prevent further age spots or to make the existing age spots bigger and darker. Follow these tips:
- Wear a strong sunscreen (with a SPF of at least 30): If you are worried about having adequate sunlight to convert vitamin D in your skin, take a vitamin D supplement.
- Cover your head: Wear a hat or cap as much as possible when going outside. You can also use a sun umbrella.
- Avoid sunbathing: Avoid sunbathing between noon and 3 p.m., when the sun’s UV rays are the strongest.
- Cover your body: Cover your body with clothes, like wearing long sleeves or wearing a T-shirt while swimming.
- Avoid tanning beds: Do not use tanning beds. They have been associated with increased age spots, accelerated aging, and skin cancer.
- A healthy diet: Consuming a healthy diet can also protect the skin against damaging UV light. Olives, olive oil, tomatoes, fruits like pomegranate, green tea, and various vegetables contain substances that protect the skin against UV damage. Salmon contains astaxanthin, a potent antioxidant that studies have found can potentially reduce UV damage, and omega-3 fatty acids, which can quell inflammation. Follow the NOVOS Longevity Diet for optimal all-around longevity nutrition.
- Slow down aging: Given that aging can also cause sunspots, it’s important to slow down the aging process. For example, adjust your diet or take longevity supplements like NOVOS Core and NOVOS Boost, which address the 12 causes of aging, including senescent cells.
The Bottom Line on Age Spots
To truly prevent and minimize age spots, focus on slowing the aging process from the inside out. A skin-supportive diet, smart sun protection, and science-backed longevity supplements can make a real difference.
Remember, aging is inevitable, but how you age is up to you. To take control of how your skin ages, explore the full line of NOVOS products — with advanced formulations that target the root causes of aging from the inside out.
