What You Don’t Know About Your Freckles, According to Derms
Besides being famous, what do Pamela Anderson, Meghan Markle, and Emma Stone have in common? A face full of freckles, or “angel kisses,” as Grandma may have called them. The spots are like snowflakes—no two are the same, and they tend to decorate areas that get the most sun like the nose, cheeks, and shoulders. And although they’re completely normal and expected, some people are more likely to have them than others.
Meet the Experts: Asmi Berry, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist in Los Angeles and Natasha L. Copelin, N.P., a nurse practitioner and founder of Vibrant Rejuvenation.
Below, experts offer a quick guide to freckles, including what exactly they are, who gets them, and how to fade their appearance if you wish.
Freckles causes
“People do not have freckles naturally,” says Asmi Berry, M.D., a board-certified dermatologist in Los Angeles. Scientifically called ephelides, freckles are melanin spots triggered by sun exposure, Dr. Berry explains. The pigment is created by melanocytes, or pigment-producing cells, to protect skin from damage by absorbing and reflecting ultraviolet light.
People who have a specific variation of the MC1R gene, which affects skin and hair pigmentation and determines melanin distribution in the skin, are more prone to freckles, explains Natasha L. Copelin, N.P., a nurse practitioner and founder of Vibrant Rejuvenation, a med spa. “While fair-skinned individuals with red or light brown hair are more likely to have the MC1R gene variation, African Americans with lighter brown or golden undertones, or those of mixed heritage, may also inherit a tendency for freckles,” Copelin adds.
Other factors such as hormonal changes from pregnancy, birth control, or hormone replacement therapy, as well as antibiotics or topical retinoids may darken existing freckles or increase their likelihood of forming, Dr. Berry explains.
Freckles vs. sun spots or age spots
Age spots or sun spots, also known as lentigines, are often mistaken for freckles, Dr. Berry explains. “The main difference is that freckles are a temporary increase in the amount of melanin produced while lentigines are an increase in melanocytes, the melanin-producing cells,” she notes. Another way to differentiate them is freckles tend to fade when out of the sun and age spots do not.
Freckles vs. moles
The common mole and freckle aren’t all the different. A mole is essentially a cluster of freckles, and can be thicker, more like a growth. Most adults have between 10 and 40 of them, according to the National Cancer Institute. Common moles aren’t cancerous, however, people who have many of them have an increased risk of developing melanoma. You should make your doctor aware if your mole develops any of the following symptoms:
Color changes
Uneven size changes
Shape, texture, or height changes
The skin on the surface of the mole becomes dry or scaly
The mole becomes hard or feels lumpy
Itchiness
Bleeding or oozing
Freckles treatment
“Freckles tend to darken in the summer, when people are in the sun more often, and fade in the winter,” says Dr. Berry. So, if you’re looking to get rid of yours, they could fade on their own. In dark skin, freckles may be less noticeable over time due to the skin’s natural melanin acting as a shield, adds Copelin.
Sun protection is the best line of defense against the formation of new freckles. “This means wearing SPF 30+ sunscreen daily, reapplying it every two hours, and wearing a hat and sunglasses,” says Dr. Berry. “Tinted sunscreens that contain iron oxides also protect against visible light, which can also increase your skin’s pigmentation.”
Some skincare and dermatology treatments, like vitamin C, retinoids, niacinamide, and laser treatments, may fade freckles, “but they can return with sun exposure,” Dr. Berry concludes.
You Might Also Like
