Shh! Anti-agers no one but you need know about: How can I get rid of age spots on my legs by summer?
- Anonymous reader asked for advice on reducing the appearance of age spots
- Inge van Lotringen suggested reducing their appearance with exfoliating acids
- Dermatologist Dr Alexis Granite said topical creams may also be effective
Q I have age spots on my legs, but every dermatologist I’ve spoken to tells me they can’t be erased with a laser treatment. What else would help to refresh and anti-age my legs?
A Definitely listen to the dermatologists! These spots can be a result of old trauma or poor circulation and not a pigmentation problem, making them unsuitable for laser treatment.
An anonymous reader asked British beauty expert Inge van Lotringen, for advice on reducing the appearance of age spots on their legs (file image)
Also, some pigmented lesions can be pre-cancerous and should not be treated with lasers. For those pigment spots that are safe to treat, laser specialist Debbie Thomas (dthomas.com) warns that ‘the skin on the legs heals slower, requiring gentler lasers — which means more sessions [for this large area you may be looking at £2000 and up for six or more treatments].
And you might have to settle for reduced spots rather than seeing them disappear completely.’ She suggests using products with exfoliating acids (such as Revive Superieur Body Nightly Renewing Serum, £165) and high-strength vitamin C (try The Ordinary Vitamin C suspension 30% In Silicone, £5.80) to help fade pigmentation at home.
Dermatologist Dr Alexis Granite (mallucci-london.com) says chemical peels, certain topical creams and liquid nitrogen are other professional treatment options — but again, only on spots that have been green-lit by a dermatologist.
Inge van Lotringen (pictured) advised the reader to reduce the appearance with a product that has exfoliating acids
Ingeborg van LotrIngen is beauty director at Cosmopolitan. email questions to [email protected]