Use precise geolocation data. Select personalised content. Create a personalised content profile. Measure ad performance. Select basic ads. Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors.
Skin pigmentation is the color of your skin due to a certain amount of melanin, a natural pigment that gives your skin, hair, and eyes their unique color.
Learn more about what could trigger shifts in skin pigmentation, the role of genetics in skin color, different types of discoloration, and how to treat them. Your skin tone is the result of a complex process during which special cells inside the outer layer of your skin called melanocytes produce melanin.
Inside these special skin cells are organelles or mini-organs of the cell called melanosomes. Variations in the color of your skin depend on the amount, size, and functioning of these tiny melanin factories. There are two key types of melanin: eumelanin and pheomelanin:. Your skin pigmentation is determined by the balance of these types of melanin in your skin.
This can shift depending on your hormones, interactions with other cells in your body, the impact of certain genes, and more. Amazingly, over genes are known to affect skin pigmentation. Along with hormones, genes are responsible for regulating the melanin production process.
They can adjust how much eumelanin or pheomelanin your skin cells produce and how well they survive and function, causing shifts in skin color over time. Also, some chemotherapy drugs can cause hyperpigmentation as a side effect. The hyperpigmentation is a direct result of an increased level of a hormone in your body that results in increased melanin synthesis.
A dermatologist can diagnose the cause of your hyperpigmentation. They will request your medical history and give you a physical exam to determine the cause. In some cases, a skin biopsy can narrow down the cause. Topical prescription medication can treat some cases of hyperpigmentation. This medication usually contains hydroquinone , which lightens the skin. However, prolonged use of topical hydroquinone without any breaks in use can cause darkening of the skin, known as ochronosis. Home care sometimes includes over-the-counter medications that may lighten dark spots.
Home care also includes using sunscreen. Sunscreen is the single most important factor in improving most causes of hyperpigmentation. Look for:. Use a sunscreen daily. If your body makes too much melanin, your skin gets darker. Pregnancy, Addison's disease, and sun exposure all can make your skin darker. If your body makes too little melanin, your skin gets lighter.
Vitiligo is a condition that causes patches of light skin. Albinism is a genetic condition affecting a person's skin. A person with albinism may have no color, lighter than normal skin color, or patchy missing skin color. Infections, blisters and burns can also cause lighter skin.
Bronzing of the skin may sometimes be mistaken for a suntan. This skin discoloration often develops slowly, starting at the elbows, knuckles, and knees and spreading from there. Bronzing may also be seen on the soles of the feet and the palms of the hands. The bronze color can range from light to dark in fair-skinned people with the degree of darkness due to the underlying cause.
Over-the-counter and prescription creams are available for lightening the skin. Hydroquinone combined with tretinoin is an effective combination. If you use these creams, follow instructions carefully, and don't use one for more than 3 weeks at a time. Darker skin requires greater care when using these preparations. Cosmetics may also help mask a discoloration. Your provider may recommend creams, ointments, surgery, or phototherapy, depending on the type of skin condition you have.
Bleaching creams can help lighten dark areas of skin. Chang MW. Disorders of hyperpigmentation. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; chap Passeron T, Ortonne JP. Vitiligo and other disorders of hypopigmentation. Editorial team.
0コメント