One day as I was putting on hand cream, I saw them. Small round patches of brown - like a freckle. I remember a colleague once saying that hands are a telltale sign of aging - even more so than the face. 

Age spots. 

So now of course, I have to look it up. What are they? Why do they appear? How do you prevent them? How do you get rid of them?

What I found in addition to the answers to those questions was what they are sometimes called. I’m not sure which term I like least - liver spots, senile lentigo, or age spots. I mean liver spots? Getting them has nothing to do with the liver. Senile lentigo? I looked up the definition of senile. Having or showing the weakness or disease of old age. And age spots? Well, people get these spots regardless of age.

What are they really? They are sun-induced skin changes. According to the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, age spots occur when the top surface layer of skin expands with more pigment in areas that get repeated sun exposure, developing what looks like a large freckle and can occur at an early age, even in childhood.

So why don’t we just call them what they are? A sun spot. Why do we have to bring age into it? Because they’re unsightly to some people? Because some people who are over the age of 50 get them? I don’t really consider a person who is in their 50’s to be older. I guess it's a matter of perspective. To a teenager, 40 is old. To a 90-year old, 50 is a mere child. 

A person advancing in years has enough to contend with in today’s society. Ageism in the workplace is a real thing. It is widely thought that those advancing in years exhibit a lack of technical skills and an unwillingness to learn and try new things. The way aging is portrayed in the media suggests that those of a certain age are less valuable. In 2017, Allure magazine (now defunct) announced it would no longer use the term “anti-aging” because it reinforced a message that aging is a condition to be battled.

When we call them age spots and we see them on our face or hands, it’s a reminder that our days are numbered. We are getting older. After all, they are called “age” spots. Aren’t there enough other telltale reminders that our youth is slipping without adding insult to injury.

Age Sun spots. 

We don’t call wrinkles aging creases, right? We call them what they are. A wrinkle is a slight line or fold in something. It happens to a person’s skin as they age, but not always. I’ve had a wrinkle in my forehead since high school. 

For my part, I think I’ll stop using the word, age spot. Seeing sun spots on my hands means that when I put hand cream on, it’s a reminder of all of those days spent at the beach without using enough sunscreen protection. It means that when I look at my hands, I’ll see beach days, not nursing home days.