Reader\'s Digest Australia - 07.2019

22 | July• 2019

A LOT OF PEOPLE NOTICE,as
they get older, that they bruise
more easily than they used to. If
you’re among them, you needn’t
necessarily worry. Known
medically as ‘contusions’, bruises
are usually caused by capillaries
(small blood vessels) breaking and
bleeding under your skin. With
age, your capillaries naturally
grow more fragile, and your skin
and fat tissues get thinner and
less effective at cushioning them
against thumps and bumps.
At any stage of life, most bruises
are harmless and don’t need

p , y

a few weeks. Placing an ice pack

against a new contusion can reduce

its spread, according to Dr Paola

Pasquali, a member of the European

Academy of Dermatology and

Venereology. “Once the bruise has

been there for more than 48 hours,

applying warm compresses can help

speed healing,” she says.

However, if you keep seeing well-

defined purple bruises in places

where you’ve taken a lot of sun over

the years, you may have actinic

purpura, a condition that results from

THE DIGEST

treatment:yourbodywill reabsorb

the spilled blood,usuallywithin

Black

and Blue

There are many reasons

why you become more

prone to bruising

BY SAMANTHA RIDEOUT

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES