PHOTOAGEING

I was shocked to see a friend of mine whom I was meeting after years. She was a complete outdoor person; always going for afternoon swims and indulging in sun bathing thereafter. She never used Sun protection and sported a lovely tan back then. Years later, her tan was missing having been replaced with a leathery complexion and pigmentation. Why? I wondered. She is not so old. So what could be the reason? 

        A little bit of googling led me to the  answer. Photoageing is premature ageing of the skin due to repeated exposure to Ultraviolet Radiation from the Sun and  from artificial  UV  sources.  Moreover, environmental sources like cold, wind, heat,  air  conditioning  also   contribute to early ageing of our skin. 

       Visible signs of skin damage are wrinkles, dehydration of the skin, thinning and sagging skin, uneven pigmentation, thick and scaly skin, etc. Skin damage due to photoageing may have taken place early in life, maybe by the age of 20 years, but not show up until 40-50 years of age.

         So how does Photoageing begin? Well UV rays appear to be easily absorbed by the nucleic acid in the cells such as DNA. DNA in the cells enables reproduction of exact copies, but UV rays reaching DNA cause errors in the genetic code. As these errors build up our skin ages faster than it normally should. Further UV rays also cause changes in collagen, the sturdy protein fibre which provides a firm cushion and a good contour for the skin, by destroying elastic tissues.  What is worst is that UV rays increase the risk of skin cancer.

        As for preventive measures of Photoageing, the biggest favour one can do to ones skin is to ensure wearing a Sun protection cream whenever stepping out in the Sun. Alternately, carry an umbrella with you. But cover you must. Remember that skin does not age as much as it does because of UV rays. 

Image source:

https://pixabay.com/illustrations/cat-cute-cat-umbrella-cartoon-cat-3874089/