Aging Skin -- The Sun and Skin Aging

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The single most damaging thing a person can do to his or her skin is spend too much time in the sun without protection. Excess sun exposure increases the risk of all forms of skin cancer, including melanoma, the deadliest form of the disease.

In addition to raising a person's risk of skin cancer, excess sun exposure also causes photoaging, a condition that makes skin look old before its time by:

• causing or accelerating wrinkles, age spots, and pigment changes.
• making skin feel tough and leathery.

The amount of sun exposure people receive before age 30, particularly blistering sunburns, accounts for the majority of photoaging. Sun exposure is responsible for 90% to 95% of all wrinkles and nearly 100% of pigment changes. Sun exposure also can contribute to freckling, dryness, acne, and precancerous skin growths and can weaken the skin's immune response.