How to protect your skin from UV rays, even if you’re indoors
New Zealand has the highest rate of skin cancer, with over 80,000 Kiwis getting diagnosed per year and this number increases yearly. As one of New Zealand’s leading providers for skin cancer treatment, Skin Institute recommends prevention as the best solution. One of the best forms of prevention is protecting your skin from UV rays with SPF 30 or higher every day, even if you’re spending most of your time indoors. Standard glass windows block UVB but not UVA rays, which can penetrate deeper into the skin than UVB and are the main contributing factor to photo-aging — which are changes seen as dark spots, wrinkles, and leathery textured skin. It is also recommended that you get your skin checked every 12 months.
Tired, achy legs? Could be your veins
Do you ever feel discomfort and pain (usually worse as the day progresses and into the evening) around your legs? Or cramping of the calves or feet? Or you often feel a burning sensation? These are some of the symptoms of varicose veins. People often view varicose veins as a cosmetic problem, which couldn’t be further than the truth. Varicose veins are caused when the valves fail in the superficial veins. Blood then back-flows and pools in the veins. The pooling blood is what causes the veins to distend, swell and stretch causing further valves failure in the veins below. For some, if left untreated, they can result in skin damage, poor healing, and ulcers.
When it comes to Appearance Medicine treatment, you should ask your practitioner questions (and lots of them!)
Most appearance-medicine treatments involve powerful medicines and delicate procedures, so it’s important that the practitioner is qualified and experienced. While there are regulations overseeing the New Zealand industry, they don’t cover everything. Asking questions such as “how much training have they had, and how many patients have you performed this procedure on” is a great start. In NZ, the most well recognized training is the two-year NZ Society of Cosmetic Medicine (NZSCM) course and it is the only organisation recognised by the NZ Medical Council to train and regulate cosmetic doctors. When it comes to Anti-wrinkle injections, you should ask your Appearance Medicine nurses if they work closely with their supervising doctor before treatment. This is because only doctors can prescribe botulinum toxin or the dissolving enzyme that is essential for safer dermal filler treatment. While there are excellent nurses who can carry out these treatments, you should still be meeting your doctor in person regularly.
“Safety is our priority. So many people come in expecting a quick fix, but you have to look at your wellbeing as a whole. We also understand that everyone has different skin can concerns, so we take our time to get to know you and your skin in order to make a customised recommendations tailor to your skin needs.”, says Dr Shona Dalzell, Appearance Medicine Doctor, Dermatology Associate, Phlebologist at Skin Institute.
