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(Health Secrets) Has a close friend or relative tried to brush a mark off your face that wouldn’t budge? Or maybe your significant other has been staring at your hands? One of most obvious signs of aging is those dreaded age spots. They make you look older faster than a few gray hairs or fine lines. The good news is, you have natural options.
What Causes Age Spots?
The color of the upper layer of your skin comes from melanin. If you are dark-skinned, you have more melanin than those of fairer complexion.
Regular UV exposure accelerates the production of melanin, which creates a tan that helps protect the deeper layers of your skin. Since your hands and face often receive the most sun exposure and for the most prolonged periods of time, these areas will be more prone to the development of age spots.
It’s not that aging itself causes age spots; it’s prolonged UV exposure over decades that causes the melanin in your skin to be produced in higher concentrations and clump together to form these noticeable discolorations.
Age spots were also once referred to as liver spots because it was once mistakenly-believed that these spots appeared due to liver problems. This is not the case. The only connection is the spots and your liver are similar in color.
Some age spot removal creams contain dangerous mercury
If you are currently using an age spot removal cream or are thinking of purchasing one, buyer beware.
Bleaching creams, especially those made in other countries and purchased online, may contain mercury. Mercury is a potent toxin that has been shown to cause neurological impairment, kidney damage, and developmental delays in children.
Another ingredient to watch out for is a benzene called hydroquinone. Benzenes in cosmetic products have been marked as “potentially-dangerous” by the American Cancer Society.
In addition to being a potential carcinogen, hydroquinone makes your skin less able to protect itself from UVA and UVB rays.
How to remove age spots naturally
1. Lemon juice
Lemon juice contains alpha hydroxy acids that gently bleach your skin and fade age spots naturally. Soak a cotton ball in organic lemon juice and apply it to the affected areas. Leave it on for 5-30 minutes before rinsing off. If you have sensitive skin, use the juice for 5 minutes at first and gradually work your way up.
Since lemon juice may increase your sensitivity to sunlight, do not use this remedy right before sun exposure. Within a few months, this treatment should help fade your age spots so they aren’t as visibly noticeable.
Do this twice a day.
2. Aloe Vera gel
Aloe Vera gel has been shown to be effective in fading age spots naturally. For best results, use the gel directly from a succulent plant instead of from a bottle. Open a leaf of the plant and place the oil directly on your age spots. Leave it on for 30 minutes then rinse it off. Use this remedy twice per day.
3. Turmeric and buttermilk
Turmeric is a natural anti-inflammatory and antioxidant that helps protect your skin against further sun damage while helping to fade the spots you have now. For best results, mix a teaspoon of turmeric and enough buttermilk to make a paste. Place the mixture on your spots and allow it to sit for up to 30 minutes. Rinse off. Use twice per day.
4. Vitamin E Oil
Vitamin E oil helps protect cellular membranes, prevents cellular aging, and may inhibit the growth of skin cancer. For best results, break open a 400 IU capsule and rub the oil onto the spots each day and night.
5. Coconut Oil
Raw, organic extra virgin coconut oil is the ultimate natural anti-aging cream. It contains lauric acid, which helps fade away age spots naturally while reducing other visible signs of aging such as crow’s feet and fine lines. Massage the affected area(s) twice per day and allow the oil to sink into your skin.
Each of the remedies mentioned above can be used together or individually so you can test which works best for you. If you have any type of allergic reaction to any of the remedies, discontinue use immediately.
Fading your age spots naturally will help you enjoy a healthier, more youthful glow without the potential side-effects (or expense) of prescription and over-the-counter creams.
For more information:
http://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm294849.htm
Photo by Julien.Belli 
