Chances are good you've heard of creams, lotions, or serums that claim they eliminate dark spots on your skin.

These spots, also often called liver spots, can begin appearing as early as age 20. Over time, they appear on your face, neck, arms, legs and any other place exposed to sunlight.

They affect some people more than others, depending a lot on how much direct sunlight you expose yourself to, your skin color, and your age.

Doctors will tell you they're harmless because - by themselves - they are. Skin doctors are concerned with skin cancer, but not with spots that don't threaten your life.

(When in doubt as to which is which, they'll take a biopsy.)

But, of course, these spots make people feel older and less attractive. And there's a good reason for that. According to one study, people with lots of dark spots are judged as 20 years older than they actually are.

And dark spots may be the outer evidence of poor nutrition that is affecting your internal health as well.

Mainstream Medicine

That's why there're such over-the-counter treatments such as: deoxyarbutin, glycolic acid, alpha hydroxy acid, and kojic acid.

Skin doctors can prescribe more powerful bleaching creams to lighten your skin. They usually contain hydroquinone and retinol such as tretinoin.

These creams take months to work and, more problematically, make your skin even more sensitive to damage from the UV radiation of sunlight. You'll have to constantly apply sunscreen when you're outdoors or simply live on a vampire's schedule.

Cosmetic skin doctors can also carry out such procedures as intense pulsed light treatments, chemical peels, dermabrasion, cryosurgery, laser treatments, and microdermabrasion.

All of these come with potential side effects from damaging your skin and leaving you uncomfortable for up to three months.

That's why skin doctors tell you to avoid direct sunlight as much as possible - and use sunscreen when you can't.

No doubt about it, reducing direct sunlight exposure will help you retain clear skin.

But What If There's Also Another Cause

As usual, doctors don't want to bring up the subject of what you eat.

AGEs Also Cause Age Spots

That's Advanced Glycation End-products.

Glycation is a biochemical process where extra sugar in skin fibers adheres to the proteins collagen and elastin.

Collagen and elastin are the two proteins that give your skin its strength, firmness and stretchiness. Anything that interferes with or reduces them makes you look older.

According to an article in Scientific Reports, glycation is "known to promote stiffness and loss of elasticity" in connective tissue (such as skin, though glycation can also affect your entire body.

Glycation causes spots that are brown with cross-hatched wrinkles.

Glycation also affects which type of collagen your skin contains.

They're known as Types I, II & III. 

Type I is the weakest, and Type III is the strongest. Glycation degrades Type III collagen to Type I.

AGE's also deactivates your skin's natural antioxidant enzymes. This weakens its ability to fight off damage by free radicals - from UV radiation, air pollution, smoke, and other skin stressors.

Mainstream science isn't ready yet to tell Americans to reduce their sugar consumption if they want to keep their skin looking youthful, but that is what the evidence points to.

If excess sugar in the skin causes glycation and, therefore, the darkening of your skin, then the logical conclusion is to cut down on how much sugar you eat.

This would include all kinds of processed sweeteners plus processed carbohydrates - which also increase your blood sugar.

Polyphenol Skin Products

They're a recent trend in the skincare world - products extracted from plants rich with healthy polyphenols.

Plants are exposed to the direct UV radiation of sunlight even more than we are. In fact, they NEED sunlight for energy. But that doesn't mean the UV radiation component of sunlight is not damaging to them. Besides, they couldn't put on sunscreen even if they had it.

Therefore, plants have developed powerful antioxidants to protect themselves from the destructive side of sunlight. That enables them to get the sun exposure they need for energy without it destroying them.

We know of around 4,000 different kinds of these polyphenols, but there're no doubt many more. 

Polyphenols are so powerful they can even help your skin repair the damage caused by AGE's. 

Your skin totally rebuilds itself every five weeks. What if you applied one of the polyphenol products to your skin every day for those five weeks? 

Would that restore your skin to its 20-year-old appearance?

That's probably too optimistic unless you're just 21, but many women are experiencing reductions in AGE-caused dark spots. Some disappear entirely.

Other Ways to Protect Your Skin from Age and Age Spots

Remember: applying healthy creams and lotions is great, but your skin's health begins on the inside.

1. Reduce your consumption of sugar and processed carbohydrates.

I'm NOT saying to eat only protein and fat - just stick to unprocessed carbs. They don't spike your blood sugar levels.

2. Stay well-hydrated by eating water-rich fruits and vegetables.

I know, I know - everybody and their brother is telling you to drink water until it's sloshing around your brain.

Me, I could never leave the bathroom. Getting your water from water-rich plants works much better.

3. Eat plenty of antioxidants/polyphenols.

Conveniently, the best sources of antioxidants and polyphenols to protect your skin from free radical damage are plants, especially fruits and vegetables. 

4. Sleep 7-9 hours every night.

That's when your body repairs the damage of the day. Let's face it - SOME daily damage is inevitable. But your body can and does regenerate your skin while you sleep. 

Especially when it's got plenty of water and antioxidant/plant polyphenols. Just saying.

Scientific studies have demonstrated that lack of sleep results in wrinkles.

https://www.revealskinbody.co.nz/blog/whats-glycation-and-how-to-fight-it

https://www.drweil.com/health-wellness/health-centers/aging-gracefully/glycation-slowing-skin-aging/

https://www.healthline.com/health/age-spots

https://humanfoodbar.com/gundry-md-supplements/polyphenol-dark-spot-diminisher/

https://www2.darkspotfix.com/video220118a_ap