During discussions about treatments for facial rejuvenation, patients regularly ask me for advice on how to improve the look and feel of their hands. Our hands are as vulnerable as our face to aging and the effects of the sun and the environment, but they are often overlooked. Common manifestations of aging and sun exposure include wrinkles, skin thinning, and brown spots. Below are seven tips that can help your hands look younger.
Off-the-shelf tips
- When it comes to photoprotection, apply sunscreen with broad UVA and UVB protection, and SPF 30, on your hands regularly to protect them from skin cancer and prevent further sun damage.
- For brown spots, use creams that contain hydroquinone or kojic acid.
- To reduce dryness and dullness, use a thick moisturizer on your hands. Try applying Aquaphor under cotton gloves overnight for very dry, sensitive hands.
Dermatology tips
- For brown spots that don’t respond to bleaching creams, or for people who want a more immediate and definite result, lasers and light based systems such as the Alexandrite laser or Starlux Icon IPL can diminish unwanted sun spots and age spots.
- To improve skin texture, tone and discoloration, fractional resurfacing treatments with the Fraxel Restore or Dual are an excellent way to revitalize the skin. Photodynamic therapy is another light based treatment that improves sun damaged skin as well as skin discoloration.
- To reduce unwanted prominent, ropey veins that can develop with advancing age, a great treatment is sclerotherapy.
- To rejuvenate aging hands which tend to look thin and hollow, consider injection with hyaluronic acid fillers such as Restylane or Juvéderm, the poly-lactic acid filler Sculptra, or the calcium hydroxylapetite filler Radiesse. These are dermal fillers that plump the skin and restore the volume loss that occurs with age.
There are many ways to get your hands to look healthier and more youthful; some easy ones and some requiring dermatology treatments like the ones we offer at SkinCare Physicians. So if you start to notice skin changes on your hands and you are thinking about anti-aging treatments, remember there are terrific options that can help. Have you tried any so far? We would love to hear your story.
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