Tag Archives: removal of freckles

Kojic Acid– Can it lighten my skin?

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Kojic Acid  has been around for almost  100 years.  It was originally discovered by Japanese scientists  who were working on different fermenting methods  to turn malted rice into sake.  As the story goes, the scientists noticed that spots and freckles on their hands disappeared after working with Sake production.  Kojic Acid has been a popular Japanese beauty aid for generations.  In recent years we’ve learned that Kojic Acid acts somewhat  like hydroquinone by preventing melanin  formation.

Research has shown that Kojic Acid can be effective but it has its problems.  On the one  hand it tends to be unstable and high concentrations are often needed to be an  effective spot buster.  On the other hand, Kojic can be very irritating and is known  to cause allergic reactions.  Often the best solution is to combine lower concentrations of Kojic acid with other skin lighteners like soy or hydroquinone.

If you want to try Kojic acid skin lightening creams, make sure you do a little patch test on your arm before slathering it on your face.

Exploring a New Freckle Fighter

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I was intrigued by a new freckle fighting cream called Elure.  There are  good clinical studies that it can lighten dark patches in 7-28 days.  Elure gets  its power from a type of naturally occuring enzyme derived from tree mushrooms.  Called legnin peroxidase, it acts by breaking down melanin  in the skin cells.  Unlike hydroquinone, this enzyme is non irritating  and shows no skin sensitivity.

We all know that excess pigmentation is linked  to sun exposure.  What is less well known is that as we get older there is an increase in dark spots and splotches due to a slowdown in the rate of cell growth. In our twenties cells turn over every 28 days.  By the 50′s, the cycle is extended to 45 days.  This means that darkened skin cells  get even darker and stay around longer.

I’ve pretty much eliminated  the dark spots on  my face and neck with lasers, IPL and a maintenance program of retinoids. But dark spots come back and I’m always looking for new  anti-freckle remedies.  To test them out I’ve identified some  pretty big freckles on my arms.  Now to be perfectly clear. I’m not really concerned  about how they look ( I’m not that vain).   But I’m glad that I still have freckles  to be part of my science project.

Elure is an unusual product in that its a two step  process.  In step one, you apply a dab of  active Melanozyme  from  one side of  the compartment in the Elure  jar.  Wait for a minute than top it with the same amount of Bio-Activator from compartment 2.   I’m going to do this both in the evening and in the morning.  In the daytime, I’ll top it with a zinc oxide sunscreen.

My before photo  shows a 1/4 inch freckle on my forearm.  I’m going to continue with the Elure treatments for up to 28 day, taking a new photograph every week.  This is going to be interesting.

Red Carpet Shoulders

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Watching the celebs walk the red carpet during awards season, I began to focus on the flawless  chests and creamy  shoulders of the stars  in their strapless gowns.  Was I  the last woman in America with  age spots  on my upper body?

The short answer is  no.  This is an often overlooked spot until a dress or bathing suit suddenly reminds you that sun damage doesn’t stop at the chin. That’s the bad news.   The good news?   There a buffet of spots removers including skin bleaches, IPL, lasers, Fraxel, peels and  microdermabrasion. The question is  which one  is the best.   According to Dr Marmur, I have several  different types of discolorations that require  different types of treatments.  For example the true freckles can be easily treated with a YAG or Ruby laser– the same type that I used on the freckles ( aka age spots) on my face and hands.  The raised spots are actually skin tags that are best cut off or burned away with electrocauterization.  As you can see  from my before photo, the red spots are atually more numerous and I’ll find out what they are  and how they are treated when I  get them removed tomorrow.  Its a good thing its still scarf weather here, since I  know from past experience that I’ll have a bunch of red scabs  on my neck for at least a week.

My New Beauty Baseline

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I got a new high resolution facial imging photo from Dr Bruce Katz  at the Juva Medispa in New York City.  My original image was done with the Reveal   machine– and to be able to accurately judge changes in my skin, I needed to get a new baseline photo from the same machine that I would be using to chronicle the differences anti-aging treatments will make. Equally important, these photos will be “read” by  the same expert  pair of eyes.

The  new photos done on the Visia imaging machine  also provides more information about dark spots, pores, wrinkles and texture.   According to Dr Katz, “the ultra violet light allows you to see what can’t be seen”.  Dr Katz   recommends  that women from 20-80 get a baseline facial imaging to assess the health of the skin– and spot potential skin cancer areas  long before they become a real problem.  Dr Katz  provides this service as part of the care at his skin and laser center (juvaskin.com).  If you want to find  out  where to get facial  imaging in your area, send me your  zip code and I will locate the nearest one to your home. 

My new photos were both interesting and encouraging.   The yellow circles are the computer pointing out areas of greatest sun damage that can be measured later.   The darkened areas over  my eyes look  like some kind of permanent smoky eye make-up.   For my age I am in the 79th percentile for age spots and 97st percentile for wrinkles.  This means that out of 100 women, I have fewer age spots than 79% and less wrinkles than 97% of women.  Remember that these good numbers are after a year of Retin A, IPL and various lasers for spots and hair removal.  I wish I had known about this tool before starting my anti-aging project, but I still have  many options to explore.  First on my list is  my big girl Retin A. I have been putting off starting it, but now I’ve run out of excuses.  In about eight weeks, I will return for another UV photo to check for improvements.

Anti-Aging Hands, part 3

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The day fter the laserering of my hands, the spots feel totally healed.  They still look pretty red, but  they are not at all painful.  Rather than cover them  up with the dressings Dr M gave me, I decided to  use the same concealer that worked so well when I  lasered the age spots on my face– and off I  went for the day.

The no- bandaid decision was probably not my best idea.  The concealer quickly wore off and I realized that my raw laser treated hands  were getting way to much exposure to UV rays.  I ducked into Hampton Chutney, an UWS restaurant for lunch and was halfway thru my sandwich and perfect Indian ice coffee when  a preganat woman stopped by my table.

“Excuse me, but this is the only empty table ” she said hesitantly, gesturing to the table next  to me. “  And well, I am wondering, are your contagious ?”  she stammered  pointing  in the  direction of my red spotted hands.”

“No, I’m not contagious, just vain”  I tried to explain.  She looked unconvinced as  she kept scannning the room for another table.  Fortunately for the both of  us, a table opend up across the room, and she hustled to claim it.

My red spots continued to attract unwanted attention.  On line at Zabar’s, the iconic  food store, a man with a Yankee cap asked ”are those  bed bug bites?” I gave up and headed to the closest pharmacy to buy the biggest bandaids I could find.  Tomorrow I am going to start out the day with a dressing covering the spots.  When they are no longer so much attention getting, I am going to protect them  with a physical sunblock like  Neutrogena for Sensitive Skin Sunscreen.  It is free from all chemical sunscreens which can be irritating to laser treated skin– and  gets it sunblocking abilities from zinc oxide.  Skin treated with lasers  is especially vulnerable to UV damage and I’ve worked hard to make my hands young and smooth.  Skin treated with Retin A or Tri-luma  also has increased sun sensitivity -especially  when you just start  using them-  and might be happier with a physical, rather than chemical sunscreen.

Anti-Aging Hand Care

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When I was just starting out as a beauty writer, a very elegant Conde Nast editor told me that ” hands give away  your true age”.  Back then, her mark went right over my head.  Today I get it. While Retin A and IPL have polished my skin smooth, my hands are wrinkled, veiny and dotted with brown spots.

I have been fairly diligent  about using sunscreen on my face, but pretty much forgot about my hands.  Like a textbook description of sun damage, the back of my hands  have wrinkles and age spots. According to my derm, Dr Marmur,  the spots  may fade in a bit over the winter, but will come roaring back even darker  in the spring.  Best treatment?  Another date with a laser .  I will get them zapped off this week and post my progress.

While it might seem vain to care about wrinkled hands, until the day  age and wisdom are as valued as young and sexy, I’m going to explore all  my beauty options.