What Exactly Is Sun Damage?

And can sun damage be invisible? It sure can. Here’s the essential info’ you need to keep your skin safe from damaging rays…

So you’ve heard it time and time again – apply sun protection to your skin every single day, even if you’re just making a short trip to the bus stop each morning, as sun damage can occur in the shortest amount of time. Importantly, there are very good reasons for this advice.

“Signs of sun damage are clear when we compare sun-protected skin, such as the inner, upper arms, with our face and décolletage,” says Dr Katherine Armour of The Dermatology Institute Of Victoria. “These include brown spots, wrinkling, dilated blood vessels and diffuse redness.”

That’s right, every second of sun exposure actually causes damage to skin. To protect your face through the day, layer a lightweight sunscreen like Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Face Sunscreen SPF50+, $16.99, under foundation for full coverage.

“With more severe sun damage, a sallow appearance to the skin can also be evident,” continues Dr Armour. “Precancerous spots such as solar keratoses are red, scaly lesions also seen on sun-exposed sites. Overall, all of the above signs of sun damage lead to a loss of luminosity of the skin.”

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“Solar keratoses can sometimes spontaneously improve with sun protection, but other signs of sun damage do not tend to improve over time unless they are specifically treated,” finishes Dr Armour.

Our best tip? Do your best to protect your skin all day, every day, because damage can occur when you least expect it.

This is a sponsored post by Neutrogena. All opinions expressed by the author are authentic and written in their own words.