Age spots appear in your skin due to excessive exposure to the sun, hereditary causes or bad care for your skin. They are dark blemishes that appear as flat, tan, brown or dark brown spots, and usually appear on forearms, neck, chests, and your face. If you have these blemishes anywhere on your body, you might need to consult a skin care physician to determine if age spot removal would be right for you. If the spots appear cancerous in nature, your dermatologist will likely advise you to undergo a procedure to remove the spots.

Age spots are much more common in those who have freckles and burn easily, and at times it is difficult to understand why they appear. The best prevention to avoid the spots is to always wear sunscreen if you are going in the sun, or to avoid the sun altogether. You will never find any age spots in places that never see the sun. For most people, it is much too late to prevent these blemishes from appearing on the skin, but there are several safe treatment options to explore that will improve your appearance and perhaps prevent any cancerous lesions from ever appearing.

Treatment options available for age spot removal include: fotofacial/IPL, laser resurfacing, bleaching creams and chemical peels. Bleaching creams are sold over the counter and contain 2 percent hydroquinone. Some prescription creams may use single agents, such as Retin-A or combinations of medications. These creams usually are well taken, and are used to gradually lighten and diminish the spots over time. You must be aware of the potential side effects that may arise from bleaching creams such as drying, peeling redness. Creams are not effective for everyone and sometimes the risks and benefits outweigh the positives.

Chemical peels are administered by your local physician and involve a number of chemicals. They are used to firm the skin, smoothing out and lightening age spots gradually. The two types of chemical peels are: superficial peels and deeper peels. Superficial peels can be done during the lunch hour and do not require any recovery time. Deeper peels are much more effective but require a much longer recovery time. See your local skin care doctor for a recommendation.

Laser resurfacing is another option that burns off age spots, wrinkles or lines with a laser. It usually is completed in just one treatment and significantly decreases and diminishes the blemishes from your skin. With good sun protection, the effects from laser resurfacing can last up to five years. Recovery time can last up to a week and can be very expensive. One treatment costs anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000 depending on the area treated.

IPL Fotofacial is the last option to explore for age spot removal. Unlike lasers, IPL delivers energy to the superficial and deeper layers of the skin. The recovery time is shorter, but may require several more treatments in order to receive the desired results.

In order to best decide which of these treatments is right for you for age spot removal, please consult with your physician.