During the summer, the extra time in the sun, exposure to chlorine, “vacation” diets and the excessive heat can lead to dehydrated skin, dark brown or red spots and wrinkles – I don’t know about you, but that isn’t the souvenir I wanted from my summer vacation.

Have no fear – there are a few simple things you can do both at home and by visiting your trusted aesthetician to detox and clean-up your skin, in no-time at all.

Drink water – your skin and body are depleted of necessary moisture and water after exposure to the elements for the past several months. Dehydration causes a number of problems for your body, brain, and skin. All of which accelerate the aging process and the look of your skin.

Exfoliate – dead skin cells left from the summer elements can cause your complexion to look dull. Exfoliation with a gentle cleanser will help to brighten your skin and erase fine lines and wrinkles. Removal of dead skin cells will also help with the absorption of other skin care products such as moisturizers and serums. If you want to see more immediate results, a microdermabrasion may be what you are looking for – (link to page) this exfoliating procedure smoothes and lightly resurfaces skin by removing dead skin cells, with no discomfort, downtime or recovery period.

Moisturize – after washing your face or exfoliating, follow-up with an anti-aging moisturizer – twice a day. This, combined with drinking more water, will help to rehydrate your skin from both the inside and outside.

Sunscreen – many people make the mistake of packing away their sunscreen at the end of summer. It is critical that you incorporate it into your daily skin routine and ensure the product you use is broad-spectrum to protect against UVA and UVB rays.

To accelerate the repair of your sun battered skin, there are a number of laser treatments that can help to erase brown or red spots, eliminate fine lines and wrinkles while stimulating the production of collagen.

Another area of concern for many is the décolletage. The skin here is thinner and less elastic than that of your face so it often shows deep wrinkles and sun damage more quickly than your face. It’s important to apply moisturizer and sunscreen to this area everyday as part of your skin care routine to prevent further damage. Recently, Ultherapy was approved by the FDA as the only non-invasive treatment to improve the appearance of lines and wrinkles on the décolletage. It builds new collagen, is non-invasive, requires no downtime or recovery and can be done in a single treatment.

So rest assured, whether it is damage from this summer or from years of time in the sun, there are things you can do to help improve the appearance and numerous treatments and products out there to turn back the hands of time!