Tag Archives: sun damage

Start Caring for Skin Sooner: Skin Care Tips for Teens

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It’s human nature to want to look our best, and you may even remember a time when looking your best didn’t require as much work. Although teenagers and people in their 20s can often get by with a minimalist’s skin care routine, taking care of skin early in life will help keep it looking great longer. While we often share tips for skin rejuvenation and restoring a youthful look, we would like to use this blog to encourage healthy skin care habits beginning at a young age.

Summer is the perfect time for teens and pre-teens to begin practicing a regular skin care routine since it can be difficult to make time for skin care when school’s in session. Although teenagers are often very concerned with acne and their appearance overall, they do not always take steps to control it because many simply do not know where to start. It is important to understand that your skin’s condition is as unique as you, so products that work for one person may not help someone else. No matter what type of skin care products you choose, there are certain steps that should be taken daily for better skin no matter what your age.

It’s important to wash your face at least twice daily. If you have teenagers, start by buying them a generic over-the-counter facial cleanser that is gentle on skin. Do not teach teens to pop pimples or pick at acne as doing so can lead to unsightly scars. Using a toner or astringent after washing the face can further benefit the skin by helping to balance PH levels. Teens usually benefit from products containing salicylic acid and glycolic acid that target acne-causing sebum without irritating the skin.

The most important skin care tip for young people is ALWAYS WEAR SUNSCREEN and AVOID TANNING BEDS! Not only does sun damage cause uneven pigmentation, melasma, and eventually wrinkles, but it can also cause skin cancer. We recommend using SPF 30 sunscreen daily and reapplying often. You can even go a step further in caring for your skin by choosing a mineral makeup with SPF included to wear over sunscreen for added protection.

If you have teenagers, it’s important to teach them how to take care of their skin, but it’s also important to know when it’s time to seek help. If your child’s skin conditions do not respond to over-the-counter treatments, take them to a professional. A dermatologist may prescribe topical or oral medications to treat active condition(s), but certain concerns may also be helped with cosmetic skin treatments. Microdermabrasion and certain chemical peels and facials can improve the appearance of uneven pigmentation, acne, and acne scarring, and patients with severe acne may benefit from acne light therapy.

Acne light therapy uses photodynamic therapy (PDT) to eliminate acne by shrinking over-active oil glands, killing bacteria within pores, and regulating skin cell turnover. Unlike harmful UV rays, PDT uses a blue light source that does not damage the skin. During treatment, a photosynthesizing agent is applied to the treatment area and is activated by the light source. Although patients notice results in one treatment, most patients receive multiple treatments over several weeks for optimal results. In fact, some patients choose to alternate between acne light treatments and chemical peels for even clearer skin.

The providers of Laser Lights know how important it is to teach children healthy skin care habits because the better they take care of their skin during youth, the better it looks down the road. If you’re interested in learning more about what Laser Lights has to offer, visit our website or schedule a pre-treatment consultation or appointment today. Be sure to connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ for skin care news and updates.

Prepare Your Skin for Summer

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Between the pool parties and cookouts, skin care becomes less of a priority when summer begins. However, you can keep your skin looking great without missing out on any of the fun. Whether you’re traveling or staying in town, SPF 30 sunscreen should be your number one skin care product this summer. In fact, we suggest wearing sunscreen every day—even during the winter. Not only does sun exposure cause sun spots and wrinkles, it can also cause dangerous skin cancer.

When you go to grab your SPF 30 sunscreen, be sure to put on sunglasses also. Although we don’t always think about it, sun exposure can also damage the eyes causing conditions like cataracts. Additionally, you’re more likely to squint in bright sunlight, which causes wrinkles to develop more rapidly around the eyes. Certain wrinkle reducing laser treatments can improve an aged eye appearance, but during this time of year patients often seek cosmetic injectables like Botox® and facial fillers like Restylane® to reduce wrinkles. Many patients also like eyelash and eyebrow tinting services during the summer or try Latisse® to make their lashes grow longer, darker, and thicker so they won’t have to worry about going without mascara.

Skin care routines should change as the weather changes. Although the air is more humid in Atlanta this time of year, it’s still very important to moisturize. A lighter moisturizer can usually do the trick during the summer. Exfoliation is also beneficial during the warmer months in helping to remove the skin’s surface imperfections while sloughing away dead skin cells that clog pores. We offer various services to exfoliate the skin at Laser Lights including microdermabrasion, chemical peels, and facials.

When seeking summer skin treatments, it’s important to understand the sun can exacerbate certain skin conditions. Therefore, we conduct pre-skin treatment consultations to discuss patients’ skin conditions and thoroughly evaluate the skin before treatment. Patients with rosacea often experience flare-ups with exposure to sun and heat. We offer services to improve rosacea symptoms and tips about skin care products and steps patients can take to further relieve rosacea symptoms. Although rosacea sometimes resembles acne, they are two very different skin conditions. Contrary to popular belief, sun exposure does not improve acne. While we offer acne light therapy to reduce acne, the photodynamic therapy (PDT) used is very different from sunlight and works by shrinking oil glands, killing bacteria within pores, and regulating the shedding of dead skin cells.

We also offer a variety of laser procedures to treat skin conditions, but we ask patients who seek these procedures during the summer to use caution. Laser procedures and sun exposure can cause hyperpigmentation, so we advise laser hair removal, laser tattoo removal, or other laser procedurepatients to stay out of the sun for a few weeks before and after treatment. Patients who know they will be spending most of their time indoors this summer shouldn’t have anything to worry about, but we advise these patients to wear sunscreen and protective clothing when they must go out in the sun.

Schedule a consultation today to learn more about which treatment will meet your skin’s specific needs as the seasons change. Be sure to view our website to learn more about the other procedures we offer. Also, connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ if you haven’t already for skin care news and updates on our specials.

Laser Skin Resurfacing with CO2 Fractional (Fraxel) Laser Technology Erases Imperfections

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If you came to Laser Lights Cosmetic Laser Center to have a wart removed from your knee, you might find it strange if we treated your entire leg. The original CO2 lasers used for laser skin resurfacing weren’t fractionated, so instead of targeting specific skin imperfections, the lasers treated the entire face equally. That means, even if you had rosacea and melasma only on your cheeks, your whole face would be treated with the exact same frequency. Luckily, today’s fractionated laser technology can specifically treat skin imperfections without the dreaded line of demarcation between treated and untreated skin.

If you keep up with our blog, you know the importance of quality laser equipment. Since Laser Lights is co-owned by Dr. David Whiteman of Southern Plastic Surgery, we are able to house the highest quality, medical grade lasers. Equally important to laser equipment is a highly trained laser technician as risks associated with laser skin treatments decrease significantly when performed by properly trained technicians. Details such as these are of utmost importance in facial laser treatments as well as procedures like laser tattoo removal and laser hair removal.

So you may be thinking, why CO2 Fraxel? What makes this laser treatment so different? You can get Botox® or Dysport® injected into muscles that cause wrinkles to relax and smooth lines away. You can also be treated with cosmetic injectables like Juvèderm®, Restylane®, and Perlane® to plump areas of lost volume and fill in wrinkles. Treatments like microdermabrasion and chemical peels can help correct conditions like sun damage, uneven pigmentation, and other surface imperfections. Although these are all great treatments for isolated cosmetic issues, CO2 Fraxel is most effective for overall facial rejuvenation, or those patients who exhibit multiple signs of aging like sun damage, skin texture irregularities, and blotchiness. This technology penetrates deeply into the layers of the skin that are untreatable with the softer facial rejuvenation procedures mentioned above to improve the overall surface texture of skin and help new, healthy youthful skin cells reproduce. Not only will you feel a difference in the firmness of your skin shortly after treatment, but once your skin heals (typically about one week after the treatment) you will no longer see fine lines, red spots, brown spots, or other blemishes.

Patients who are searching for a lighter facial laser treatment may be interested in our Erbium laser, which does not penetrate as deeply into the layers of skin as our CO2 fractionated laser. While CO2 fractionated laser treatment can improve many skin conditions, the procedure’s appropriateness will depend on the individual cosmetic needs of the patient. Schedule a consultation to determine which cosmetic skin service will best meet your needs. Be sure to connect with us on Facebook and Twitter for updates on our monthly specials.