Freckles or sun spots? Learn how to distinguish and avoid them

Sunspots and freckles... they're all the same... or are they?

Freckles are freckles. Adorable, and even fashionable. But, there’s more to them than just that.

Chances are if your parents had them, so will you. They are hereditary, but they can also be triggered by sun exposure. 

But even if you've had freckles since childhood you may also notice new ones appearing following sun exposure. 

Your face, your cheeks, arms, and chest, and it appears as if they have been lightly sprinkled all over these areas by a magic brush. 

Sunspots are caused by sun exposure and aren’t hereditary like freckles. They are typically larger than freckles in size. 

As a way of combating the harmful UB/UV rays in sunlight, your skin goes into overdrive and starts producing melanin more than usual. Think of them as tell-tale signs that your skin was battling sun rays and you need to be more careful when it comes to sun exposure. 

The good news is… both freckles and sunspots can fade away. 

Are they bad? Harmful? Not necessarily. But any skin change caused by the sun is something to be aware of, monitor and raise with your doctor if you are concerned.

Prevention is the best medicine so make sure you are doing everything you can to prevent sun spots from appearing.

Achieve that and you are doing a good job of protecting your skin against the sun.

Have an amazing day, Tracey x