Should I worry about my skin tags – and how can I get rid of them? 

Shh! Anti-agers no one but you need know about: Should I worry about my skin tags — and how can I get rid of them?

  • An anonymous reader asked Inge van Lotringen for advice on removing skin tags
  • Cosmopolitan beauty director spoke to consultant dermatologist, Dr Nick Lowe
  • He suggests seeing a specialist for collagen-boosting treatments or snipping

Q: I am 59 and I don’t like the look of a growing number of skin tags, which I’ve noticed have appeared on my neck. I’m worried that they are dangerous — should I be? And what can I do about them?

A: Skin tags are like ‘tiny hernias — small sacks protruding from the skin’, says consultant dermatologist, Dr Nick Lowe (cranleyclinic.com).

They can happen when the skin becomes less strong and elastic; you can sometimes see them increase with age and during or after pregnancy.

An anonymous reader, 59, asked British beauty expert Inge van Lotringen for advice on removing skin tags (file image)

They’re harmless, however they can be unsightly; fortunately, they can be easily snipped off and cauterised with an electrolysis needle (you’ll hardly feel it) or, for bigger ones, using laser.

It is best to have this done by a dermatologist so as to avoid scars or discolouration.

This will also ensure that your tags are correctly identified. It is important to check that they are not something more sinister, like pre-cancerous lesions.

You’re looking at paying from £100 for this proceedure.

Alternatively, try the Excilor Skin Tag Treatment (£24.99, lloyds pharmacy.com): it lets you safely (and painlessly) cut off the blood supply to your tags until they drop off, using special plasters.

If your tags are really multiplying, Dr Lowe also advises seeing a specialist for collagen-boosting treatments such as fractional laser (from around £200) or prescription retinoids.

These will strengthen and thicken skin’s support structure and minimise the chance of tags forming.

Cosmopolitan beauty director Ingeborg van Lotringen (pictured) advised the reader to see a dermatologist to have the skin tags removed

Cosmopolitan beauty director Ingeborg van Lotringen (pictured) advised the reader to see a dermatologist to have the skin tags removed

Ingeborg van Lotringen is beauty director at Cosmopolitan. Email questions to inge@dailymail.co.uk.

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