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Skin Rejuvenation / Fotofacials
How much sun is too much? By Susie Densley
Ahh, the warmth of the sun on a lazy summer day.
Thinking about it makes me just want to close my eyes, and tilt my face up to
embrace it. But with so much talk about sun damage these days, it makes me
wonder just how bad can it be? Am I past help? Should I slather sunscreen on
my children every day and stop them from playing outside? No, as it is true
with most things.. sun is good in moderation. We can't avoid it. We actually
need it for some things, like vitamin D synthesis which boosts your immune
system and keeps your muscles from wasting away. It helps the liver remove
toxins from the body. It's also been associated with mood enhancement, meaning
there are less cases of depression in areas that get a lot of sun exposure.
So, it's not all bad.
On the other hand, the horror
stories running rampant about sun damage come from over-exposure to the sun.
The rays emitted from the sun are broad spectrum, ultraviolet rays. There are
two in particular that we need to watch out for. UVA or the "aging" rays, and
UVB or the "burning" rays. When you buy sunscreen, you want something that
will help protect you from both. Depending on the amount of sun exposure you
get during the day, it should have an SPF (sun protection factor) of at least
15, or higher if you plan to be in direct exposure. You need protection even
if your skin is darker, because you may not burn on the surface, but the aging
rays penetrate much deeper, and are the cause of wrinkles and premature aging.
Okay, so what happens with over
exposure to the sun? If you are not properly protected, the connective tissue
and collagen in your skin will break down. This will cause our bodies to heal
more slowly, you will look older, due to loss of skin integrity, causing
wrinkles and premature aging. You'll notice hyper-pigmentation (aka sun spots
or age spots), and your risk for skin cancer increases. When I was young, I
remember my mom and sisters laying in the sun for hours every day. They'd
slather on the baby oil, and even place tin foil around their chairs to make
sure they got the sun's reflection on the other side. Sometimes at the end of
the day, they'd even have a few blisters on their chests because they got
burned so badly. But boy, were they proud of their tanned, glowing skin!
People still like the look of
tanned skin, but are more aware of the dangers now. You can, and still should,
go out and enjoy it. You can never protect yourself 100%, and that is okay,
because don't forget there are benefits gained from sun exposure too. If you
are one of those who spent a lot of time sun bathing in your youth, don't
fret. With technology today, we can help you reverse the results of sun damage
on your skin! With treatments ranging from topical lightening serums, to
chemical peels, and Intense Pulse Light (IPL) fotofacials we can work out a
treatment plan to make you look as young as you feel. Sun damage does NOT!
have to be permanent.
What is an IPL? By Susie Densley
Are skin imperfections giving away your age? ...
say goodbye to Rosacea (redness), broken capillaries, age spots, uneven skin
tone, and sun damaged skin!
Until recently, the main,
non-invasive treatment for facial rejuvenation and sun damage was the chemical
peel. While effective at removing surface damage, you had to undergo deeper
peels administered by doctors, and many times under general anesthesia, to
treat pigmentation and texture issues that were more deeply involved. With the
advancement of intense pulsed light (IPL) fotofacials, you can achieve total
skin rejuvenation with minimal to no downtime.
At Escape Skin Care Center, we
utilize Elos technology which is leading the way for the safest, most
effective treatments that are highly targeted, and work without damaging the
skin’s surface. Also known as photofacial, and photo rejuvenation, the IPL
uses both intense pulsed light and radio frequency to target hyperpigmentation
and broken capillaries.
A conductive gel is applied to your
skin prior to the treatment tip, which is cooled. This keeps the top layer of
your skin cool and somewhat anesthetized. Then, highly selective light
energies are absorbed by the hemoglobin and pigmented lesions, while bi-polar
radio frequency energies selectively heat blood vessels. This minimizes the
effect on pigmented skin and enables us to safely and effectively treat your
skin concerns. Because the energy is attracted toward the deeper, warmer
layers caused by the light, the cooled surface of your skin remains undamaged.
We are able to safely improve
superficial pigmented and vascular blemishes including hyperpigmentation
caused by sun damage, hormones, acne scarring, or age; and redness caused by
rosacea or broken capillaries. The IPL also stimulates collagen production to
soften and smooth the appearance of fine line and wrinkles, pore size, and
textural irregularities. Pigmented lesions are pulled toward the surface and
eventually are absorbed or flake away.
Most of us have much more damage
that is not visible on the surface. It is important to note that that damage
will be pulled to the surface as well as anything we are targeting. Therefore,
if it seems like you actually have more pigmentation issues after your
treatment than you did when you started, you probably do. It’s not something
the machine created, but actually helped to pull up from the deeper layers of
your skin. With repeated treatments, done every 3 to 4 weeks, the pigmentation
will continue to dissipate, and eventually will be removed.
During these treatments, it is
imperative you use sun protection, avoid direct sun exposure, avoid tanning
booths, and use the recommended skin care products at home. It is equally
important that you commit to receiving your treatments on time, every 3 to 4
weeks, as cell turnover does affect how much of the pigmentation we can reach.
The IPL Fotofacial is an amazing
advancement in technology, but not the complete answer. There are treatments
to enhance it’s effect such as microdermabrasion, which will exfoliate the top
surface layer and allow the light energies to travel even deeper into the
skin. These along with reFirme skin tightening provide the ultimate in skin
rejuvenation. Ask about our TRIO treatments today!
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