As we get older, we experience many changes in our body, including various skin conditions. How our skin fares in our golden years depend on our lifestyle and diet, as well as on how we take care of our skin throughout our lifetime.

Habits such as smoking and drinking can damage our skin. So does frequent sun exposure. In fact, skin damage can occur to skin when left unprotected under the sun. This is because the ultraviolet light from the sun breaks down the elastic tissue in the skin, causing it to sag, stretch, wrinkle, and become splotchy. There may be times that sun exposure can also cause growths that may lead to skin cancer.

Other common skin conditions that you can expect as you age are:

• rough, dry skin
• benign growths such as cherry angiomas and seborrheic kerastoses
• loose skin, especially in the face (jowls, cheeks, and eyes)
• thinning skin that looks more and more transparent
• easy bruising

The visible signs of aging are evident on the skin, such as:

1. Wrinkles. This is perhaps synonymous with aging. How soon your wrinkles appear may be due to the amount of exposure you get from the sun over the years. Furthermore, smokers tend to have more wrinkles compared to non-smokers.

2. Laugh lines. These are also called facial movement lines that appear on the forehead, vertically above the nose or around the mouth and eyes.

3. Dry and itchy skin. The loss of oil glands due to aging can cause the skin to become dry. Dry, itchy skin may also be due to kidney disease, diabetes, or liver problems.

4. Age spots. Age spots are small, brown patches that appear on the skin, usually in areas that are usually exposed to the sun such as the face, arms, and hands.

5. Skin cancer. The most common cause of cancerous growths on the skin is sun exposure.

6. Bed sores. These are skin ulcers that develop on the skin when they are laying in bed or sitting in a chair for a long time. These are common among people who have trouble moving on their own and are confined in bed or in a wheel chair. Frequent assisted movement and re-positioning can help prevent bed sores.

Do you need help caring for your elderly loved ones? Perhaps you need a facility such as Blessed Home. We provide nursing home and adult daycare services.