SUN, SKIN & AGEING

our skin naturally ages, but environmental factors such as UV rays can cause skin to age prematurely, and increase risk of skin cancers

ageing - blame it on the sunshine

research has found that the suns rays are responsible for 80% of skin ageing.

just a 2% increase in skin damage from UV, ages a face by 3 years, and the effects of UV exposure increase with age.

lips and eyes are particularly vulnerable to the effects of UV ageing, because skin here is particularly thin and delicate.

come rain or shine

we are exposed to UV rays every day, even on cloudy days.

UVA can penetrate through glass, so can silently damage and age your skin whilst you are in a car or inside sitting by a window.

UV exposure

long term exposure to UV, pollution and infra-red rays generates free radicals in the skin, where they cause oxidative stress and the breakdown of collagen.

loss of firmness, elasticity, pigmentation, uneven skin tone, changes in skin texture and wrinkles are the result.

 

the good news

the good news is that premature ageing due to UV rays is largely preventable.

avoiding excessive sun exposure and protecting your skin every day with broad spectrum sunscreen and anti-oxidants, can help keep your skin healthier, post-poning wrinkles and loss of firmness.

lips and ageing

lips are one of the first areas to show signs of ageing, particularly in women.

daily use of broad-spectrum UVA and UVB sunscreen, anti-oxidants and emollients can help slow this process down.

daily lip sunscreen also protects against lip cancers, which are seen more in people who spend a lot of time outside.

so why are lips so vulnerable and need extra care?

skin is very delicate and thin – just 3-5 cell layers thick compared to up to 16 layers on the face.

lips have no melanin (a natural pigment produced in response to damage in an attempt to prevent more), so they can burn and peel, but will never tan.

 

lips can’t produce natural oils, so can easily become dehydrated and dry – thick layers of dry ‘hard to remove without further damage’ skin are never fun!

UV exposure also triggers cold sores because it suppresses natural immunity within tissue – they cause further damage to delicate skin and often changes in the lip line appearance over time.

reduce damage, slow ageing

UV damage, sunburn, smoking, cold, dry weather, air-conditioning, sore and chapped lips – just a few factors that accelerate lip ageing.

we can’t stop ageing but we can reduce the damage that speeds it up – with daily care, lips will be healthier, happier and we will slow down the loss of lip volume, definition and the onset of wrinkles on and around the lips.

 

 

we all enjoy a sunkissed glow

but despite what some sun care may claim, there is no safe way to tan.

a tan is simply the skin’s response to UV injury – tanning occurs when the sun’s UVA rays penetrate into the skin’s deeper layers, causing the skin to produce melanin to try to protect itself.

it’s actually oxidative stress that creates the tanned skin often and mistakenly associated with good health.

the clock is ticking - and its in your hands

every time you tan you accumulate damage to the skin -and, unfortunately, the skin never forgets this damage – clocking up all the hours of damage over a lifetime.

in fact, over-exposure to sun in your teens and early twenties can produce free radicals for decades.