Sun Damaged Latino

by zac
(ny)

This is My story. First of all I am Half Italian and Half Cuban so i have always tanned easy and have turned brown when i got sun.

Sometimes when i use to lay out i would burn first then next couple days i would turn brown. Iv'e lived in new york most of my life so during the winter months i lighten up alot then summer times comes and i darken up.

Now i haven't ever cared much if i was darker or lighter i've also been happy with my complexion so i never went to tanning beds or focused on getting alotta sun in the summer i just let nature take its course and i would get some sun when i was outside.

Now getting to the problem i have now. i moved to florida about a year ago and went to the beach one day ive been to florida and to beach a million times before so never had a problem. well i was real light skinned again because i moved during the winter so i just figured i would just get darker again.

Well what happened is i layed out in the sun with no protection for probably 2 hours and i got sunburnt again which i figured no big deal it aint the first time.

but this time i got little droplets that came on my face just around my nose and my upper cheeks which ive learned were sun blisters.

so i just kept wiping them off as they came and went to bed. so my face peeled and everything and to make the story short i now have a red nose and upper cheeks that hasn't gone away for about a year and half now and i'm just tired of it my skin just never healed.

and ive tried a million creams have been prescribed stuff from the dermatologist. i have had 3 pulse dye laser treaments and nothing seems to work the only thing that seems to calm the redness is desonide .05% but it just seems to cover it up because then i don't use it for a couple of days and it just looks red and blotchy again.

the doctors have tried to say i have rosacea and sebborich dermatitis and i just think i got a second degree sunburn that never healed because the rest of my face still looks like it did before and isn't red and looks fine its only on my nose and my upper cheeks i really need some advice i wanna have my face back to normal. thank you

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Our reply

Hi Zac, thank you for sharing. I have done some research on this for you, and from what I've learned so far, the medical viewpoint is that sun damage cannot be reversed. That being said, I would not give up hope, as I believe there is a lot you can do to help your skin to heal. I have seen many amazing miracles of healing that defy a medical explanation, and so I encourage you to continue to search for a solution.

I think that some kind of nutritional approach to regenerating your skin may hold some promise, as this can help to accelerate your own body's natural self healing mechanisms. Here is what I've learned so far that you may find helpful to maximize your body's ability to regenerate the skin.

Juicing

Drinking freshly juiced vegetables and fruits each day will increase the natural enzymes, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals that help the body and the skin to heal. Antioxidants are known to help prevent skin damage and they may be able to help your skin to recover more quickly.

Healthy Foods for Skin Rejuvenation

The healthier you eat, the faster your body can heal itself. There are some foods that can maximize your body's ability to heal your skin.

• Brazil nuts, garlic, onions, broccoli and tuna fish all contain selenium which helps to promote healthy skin and reduce the effects on sun damage
  
  
• Fresh vegetables and fruits contain a huge array of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that your skin needs to heal
  
  
• Wheat germ, almonds and sunflower seeds are natural sources of Vitamin E which has been clinically shown to reduce the effects of sun damage

Nutritional Supplements

The following supplements have been known to support the health of your skin and help it to heal more quickly.

I recommend a natural rather than synthetic form of supplements such as the Innate Response or Lifestar Multiplex brands.

• Vitamin C
  
  
• Vitamin E
  
  
• Beta-carotene, found in carrots and other vegetables, or from naturally sourced vitamins
  
  
• A pure brand of omega fatty acids
  

Natural Topical Remedies

There are some powerful natural substances that can help to promote the rejuvenation of the skin. Some will work better than others for you, as no one remedy works for everyone. Here are some of the most potent:

• Topical vitamin C - this can have a dramatic effect on some skin conditions
  
  
• Emu oil is a powerful rejuvenator and can reduce facial redness
  
  
• Tamanu oil is often used to heal skin damage
  
  
• Rose hip oil has also been used to help reduce redness and broken capillaries on the skin
  
  
• You can find more topical remedies for healing sun damaged skin at our natural scar healing page.
  

I hope these can be helpful for you Zac. Please let us know how you are doing!