Do You Have Brown Spots on Your Hairline?

Recently I was on the phone speaking to a beauty editor and she expressed frustration with having brown spots on her hairline. She explained that she had some very lightly on her forehead but they were far more prominent around the perimeter of her hairline – almost a 1″ border. I’ve seen this many times on clients before, so I definitely have insight on why this happens and what you can do to help fade their appearance.

What I know to be true, as I’ve seen it over and over through the years, is that when applying sunscreen to the face, people don’t apply all the way up to the hairline without even realizing it – perhaps so as not to get it into their hair. Because of this improper application, over the course of many years, one can accumulate excess sun damage, which will trigger sun spots for those prone to getting them.

For proper sun protection, sunscreen with a minimum of SPF 15 should be applied generously to the entire face, neck and exposed areas of the chest with a meticulous touch. Read: Which is Better: SPF 30 or SPF 100?

How can I get rid of the sun spots?

Hyperpigmentation requires both home care products such as exfoliators (Glycolic Serum 17%), at-home peels (Triple Berry Smoothing Peel) sunblock (Daily Protection SPF 30) and especially a product for lightening brown spots (Vitamin C&E Complex), in addition to professional treatments (such as laser and chemical peels) which focus on fading stubborn brown discoloration… Read more

Having a Laser Skin Procedure? Important Information You Need to Know

As technology evolves and more skin care advancements are made, some people are seeking professional treatments such as laser skin procedures in an effort to improve skin concerns such as lightening brown spots and broken capillaries. While we don’t offer this treatment at my skin care spas in Dallas, I certainly know they can be beneficial, so I refer our clients to various doctors in our area when I feel their skin would benefit from such a procedure.

Recently I was having a conversation with a friend of my mother’s, a woman in her early 60′s, and she was telling me that she had gone through a series of laser procedures to help lighten her brown spots and had been very happy with the results.

So immediately going into esthetician mode I said, “Great! Are you using a skin lightener?” She replied, “A what? No, I don’t think so.”

I can’t tell you how many times that I have had this conversation with people. They go in for a laser “fix” only to not be given proper instructions on how to maintain the results they have achieved. Why does this happen? Unlike estheticians, many dermatologists don’t spend as much of their time on daily skin care, but rather they can be more focused on treating skin diseases, prescribing medicine and giving aggressive treatments, such as mole removal and laser skin procedures. So I’m not surprised when I hear this, it’s simply the way it is. I see it like a personal trainer versus a nutritionist. They both have expertise in getting a person healthy and well, but just different areas of expertise – and there is a need for both… Read more

Use a Laptop Computer? Beware of Toasted Skin Syndrome

Along with technology’s innovative sides comes a new skin condition. They are calling it “toasted skin syndrome” which occurs when a person is continually resting their laptop on their upper thighs. The heat increases melanin production and stimulates a brown discoloration. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you’ve heard me talk about how heat can bring out brown spots in the skin – now this same thing is occurring in the legs. I recently posted about this new syndrome on Facebook, and several people commented that they did in fact have this happen to them, so there must be many affected!  Crazy, but true!

Read: Brown Spots are Made Worse from UV Heat, Not Just UV rays

The solution. While it is certainly obvious that you should discontinue keeping your laptop on your thighs, you can exfoliate the skin daily in the shower with our Exfoliating Body Cloth which helps to break down damaged pigmented cells, following with a thin coat of Vitamin C and E complex which acts as a natural skin lightener to expedite the fading process. These measures (along with time) will make for a quick recovery, helping to restore skin back to its natural even-toned state.
Read: Why January is the Best Month for Brown Spots

Sign up here to receive our monthly skin tip e-newsletter via email!

Watch my skin care tip videos! Read more

Why January is the Best Month for Brown Spots

Pigmentation, hyper pigmentation, skin discoloration, and brown spots are a huge concern for many people, and of all of the skin concerns that one may have, their treatment proves the most stubborn.

Pigmentation comes from hormones, genetics, birth control pills, and injury to the skin, such as compulsive skin pickers. (Read: Are You Guilty of Picking at Your Skin?) But what can really accelerate pigmentation is overheated skin from the sun, and activities such as saunas and exercise. These common occurrences can trigger melanin cells, which will exacerbate this condition. So during the summer months, especially for those in the southern states (where temperatures average in the 90s, and 100s) skin discoloration is at its worst.

What I know to be true from working with clients is once the fall months are underway, and the air and temperatures are cooler, the heat is not working against you anymore. So what will happen with hyper pigmentation is the brown spots will fade naturally on its own, simply because of the cooler temperatures. If you add in a skin lightener (like Vitamin C&E Complex) and exfoliating products (like Triple Berry Smoothing Peel), this will expedite the fading of summer-induced pigmentation.

By January, when you are several months out of the summer heat, that is when I find and can assess for my clients the true extent of their discoloration problems… Read more

How Deep Are Your Sun Spots?

Age spots, sunspots, hyperpigmentation, freckles, melasma, skin discoloration – whichever name you choose for those little brown patches, it can be a very troubling condition. Brown spots can be caused from UV sun exposure, heat, overuse of chemical peels, excessive picking at blemishes, injury to the skin, prescription medication, pregnancy, aging, birth control pills and more.

Depending on how deep your brown spots are, there are many solutions for treatment but first you need to identify the depth of the problem.

Try this simple test:

In a well-lit room, after you have cleansed your hands and face, gently stretch the area that is discolored.

-If skin appears lighter than when the skin is at rest, the pigmentation is close to the surface and is considered superficial

-If it appears darker than when the skin is at rest, the pigmentation lies in the deepest, dermal layers and will be more challenging to treat

For superficial pigmentation: You can accelerate the fading process with topical skin lighteners (like Vitamin C&E Complex), exfoliating acids (like Glycolic Serum) and calming antioxidants (like White Tea Soothing Complex). Because the problem is close to the surface, fading should occur over time with cellular turnover… Read more

« Previous Page — Next Page »