Ambient temperature and relative humidity are important factors in skin aging, even after controlling for ultraviolet (UV) light exposure and patient age.
These findings come from a paper published online in the journal Dermatitis.
In a press release, the paper’s authors note it is the first epidemiologic study to examine the relationship between heat index and skin aging. Investigators analyzed data on patients from India, noting the country’s different climate zones and higher temperatures are particularly suitable for these studies.
For the study, researchers assessed signs of skin aging, such as pigmentation spots and wrinkles, in 1,510 Indian women from three different cities using a scoring system (SCINEXA). In addition, data on ambient temperature and relative humidity, combined into a heat index, and data on ultraviolet radiation and air pollution (particulate matter<2.5µm; nitrogen dioxide) were collected for the last five years in the respective residential areas. Investigators then calculated the statistical relationship between heat index and signs of skin aging.
Study findings showed that the pigmentation on the forehead and coarse wrinkles such as crow’s feet and under the eyes increased significantly with increasing heat index. These associations were independent of the age of the participants and other environmental factors such as solar UV radiation, smoking status, and air pollution.
“This is the first epidemiological study to show that climate change can increase the aging of human skin,” said study author Prof. Jean Krutmann, in the release. “In current investigations, we are analyzing the mechanisms responsible for this with the aim of developing protective strategies for the skin.”
Prof. Krutmann is the Director of the Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, also known as the IUF, in Düsseldorf, Germany.
“We also want to investigate whether and how heat and air pollution interact in skin aging,” said Prof. Tamara Schikowski, an environmental epidemiologist at the IUF and another author of the study.
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