Summer is finally here! After a long and demanding winter, we can enjoy the sun, the sea, holidays, and carefree moments with friends and loved ones.
The sun is a vital source of life—it nourishes us, energizes us, and lifts our mood. However, before we put on our swimsuits and embrace its warmth, it’s important to remember that excessive sun exposure carries significant risks for our skin.
Photoaging
Photoaging refers to skin changes caused by repeated sun exposure. The skin becomes dry, thin, and lax. Fine and deep wrinkles, dyspigmentation, telangiectasias, peeling, and frequent irritations appear. Sun damage is cumulative and may take years to become clinically visible.
Ultraviolet (UV) radiation can damage cellular DNA and alter local immune responses, increasing the risk of malignant transformation into skin cancer. A single blistering sunburn in childhood or adolescence substantially raises melanoma risk later in life. In countries with high solar exposure, skin carcinomas and melanoma are among the most frequent malignancies, and incidence has been rising in recent decades.
How to Protect Yourself
– Avoid direct sun exposure between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., and practice sun safety all day long.
– Wear light, protective clothing, a wide-brimmed hat, and high-quality sunglasses.
– Use a broad‑spectrum sunscreen with SPF ≥30 that protects against both UVA and UVB. Reapply every 2 hours and after swimming, sweating, or toweling.
– Perform regular skin self‑checks and schedule professional skin exams. Any lesion that grows, changes shape, borders, or color, or bleeds should be evaluated promptly.
– Consult a board‑certified plastic surgeon or dermatologist for assessment and, when needed, safe removal of benign or malignant lesions with optimal functional and aesthetic outcomes.
Personalized Treatments
Modern aesthetic medicine offers options to reverse or minimize sun damage—such as laser therapies, mesotherapy, skin boosters, and antioxidant protocols. Treatment plans are individualized based on skin type and severity of damage, aiming to restore skin health, elasticity, and brightness.
Conclusion
Your skin is precious—protect it, care for it, and enjoy the sun safely. Make the sun your ally, not your enemy!
References
1) BMJ. Skin cancer prevention and sunscreens (2025). Available at: https://www.bmj.com/content/390/bmj-2025-085121.full.pdf
2) JAMA Dermatology. Lifetime sunburn trajectories and risks of melanoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (2022). Available at: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamadermatology/fullarticle/2796848
3) Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. Sunscreens Part 1: Mechanisms and efficacy (2025). Available at: https://www.jaad.org/article/S0190-9622(24)00785-0/abstract
