Going to the beach? Vicki Belo has some advice to prevent hyperpigmentation

With the heat that we've been experiencing for the past few days, it's crystal clear that summer is truly upon us.

Suppose you're heading to the beach for the upcoming long weekend and planning to schedule hair removal treatments on the armpits, legs, and bikini area sometime soon. In that case, Dr. Vicki Belo has some important advice before exposing your skin out in the open and preventing hyperpigmentation.

In an exclusive interview with GMA News Online, Belo said you should schedule your hair removal treatments—laser or waxing—at least one week before your beach trip.

By doing so, you will give your skin an ample amount of time to recover.

"Don't go to the beach [less than a week] after your [hair removal] treatments, kahit laser removal [pa 'yan], because it will cause hyperpigmentation," the celebrity doctor said.

For those not in the know, hyperpigmentation refers to the dark spots in the body caused by overexposure to the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays.

Aside from scheduling your hair removal treatments one week before your beach trip, Belo advises always using sunscreen to avoid hyperpigmentation.

"Apply [sunscreen on your face and body] and wait 20 minutes before the skin absorbs it and gets you protected," she said.

According to Belo, taking precautions about our body's exposure to the sun is one of the most effective ways to slow down skin aging. But aside from doing all the work on the outer part of the body, internal health also plays a massive role.

"Everybody wants to look younger," the beauty doctor said. "So, I always tell them to hydrate because you can't just do it [anti-aging] from the outside; you have to do it from the inside."

"Also, eat lots of vegetables because it cleanses out your system," she added.

For your next beach trip, check out these five tinted sunscreens to help you get sun protected this summer.

—MGP, GMA Integrated News