Frequent exposure to the sun accounts for most of your premature skin aging. The UV rays have a profound effect on your skin over the years, causing the skin to age prematurely, develop skin cancer, and cause many other negative skin changes.

Sun damage’s external symptoms include thick skin in coarse wrinkles, especially on the back of the neck (cutis rhomboidalis nuchae), and thinning of the skin: causing fine wrinkles, easy bruising, and skin tearing, particularly on the forearms and back of the hands.

Let us touch on various effects of sun damage on your skin:

The sun causes the appearance of tiny blood vessels (telangiectasias) in the skin, especially on the face.

Skin color changes caused by sun exposure are common. The most noticeable sun-induced pigment change are called brown spots (solar lentigos).

Large freckles, also known as age spots or liver spots, can be seen on the backs of the hands, chest, shoulders, arms, and upper back.

UV exposure can also cause small white spots on the legs, backs of the hands, and arms (guttate hypomelanosis) as well as red areas on the sides of the neck (poikiloderma of Civatte).

Moles (nevi) are usually seen in sun-exposed areas. Although it is normal to acquire new moles from childhood through young adulthood, the frequent exposure to sun often stimulates their formation. Atypical moles, which are seen in non-sun-exposed areas and are larger and more irregular than normal moles, serve as an indicator that the person with these types of irregular moles may be relatively more prone to developing melanoma, a type of skin cancer.

Pre-cancerous skin changes include red, scaly lesions (especially on the face, ears, and backs of the hands) called actinic keratoses. When this symptom appears on the lip (usually the lower lip), it is called actinic cheilitis. Actinic keratoses are considered premalignant lesions because 1 in 100 of these cases per year will develop into squamous cell carcinoma, another type of skin cancer.

Treatment options for Sun Damages:

• Laser therapy: Laser therapy destroys the extra melanocytes that create the dark pigment without damaging the skin's surface. Treatments with a laser typically require several sessions. After treatment, age spots fade gradually over several weeks or months. Laser therapy is very effective with few side effects.
• PCA peel: Superficial and medium-depth chemical peels can fade age spots. With superficial PCA peels, several treatments are necessary before you notice any results. A PCA peel involves applying an acid, which burns the outer layer of your skin, to the spots. As your skin peels, new skin forms to take its place. Sun protection is strongly advised following this treatment.