While for some of you it could be a blessing to soak up the sunlight, but for some of us, it could leave a fugly mark, in the form of dark patches. Those dark patches are called hyperpigmentation.
Those skin areas are darker than the rest of your body or skin. It’s more common and prevalent in darker skin toned women. However, there’s nothing to worry about. If you’re looking forward to getting rid of hyperpigmentation ever since you’re back holiday, we have some solutions for you.
We are here with some of the best advice that will surely help you cope up with hyper pigment.
Ready? Shoot.
Why are you getting hyperpigmentation and/or skin discolouration?
According to London aesthetics doctor, Dr David Jack, this usually occurs as a result of your skin’s effort to protect itself from the unfriendly effects of UV rays. When you go out in the sunlight, the melanocytes in the deeper levels of your skin produce cells that have skin-darkening pigment known as melanin. If some areas of your skin produce melanin more than required, you will end up getting dark patches, which is called hyperpigmentation.
And in any case, if you are addicted to your smartphone, we have some bad news for you:
[blockquote author=”” link=”” target=”_blank”] A recent study has shown that High Energy Visible Light (HEV) emitted from your smartphone could be a culprit. [/blockquote]
What’s the Difference between hyperpigmentation and sunspots?
Sunspots are one type of hyperpigmentation. There are several different types of hyperpigmentation; melasma (hormonally triggered), sunspots (sunburn) and scarring and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation, as per LA dermatologist, Dr Gary Goldfaden.
Is a certain body part more prone to hyperpigmentation?
Normally, it’s your face, chest and neck that are more susceptible to hyperpigmentation – more particularly melasma. It’s initially caused by birth pills, hormones, pregnancy, menopause and perimenopause. Too much exposure to the sunlight also holds greater chances of melasma and makes it difficult to get rid of it.
How to Get Rid of Hyperpigmentation?
Hyperpigmentation does not harm your skin. That must be a relief?
Okay, so here’s something that will relieve you some more: there are some ways you can treat hyperpigmentation (including home remedies).
First,
- Avoid exposure to sunlight: Sunscreens are your best friend. With an SPF of no less than 30 or higher, you can protect your skin and stop hyperpigmentation from getting darker.
- Avoid picking on your skin: Never pick at spots, acne or scars on your skin. Of course, you might have heard that numerous times, but this is also to prevent hyperpigmentation to form an injury.
And by any chance, if you have lighter patches of hyperpigmentation, then you are in luck! You can try some of these treatments:
- Use Tropical Creams: I’m sure you’ve heard of topical creams. They contain ingredients such as Vitamin C, azelaic acid, kojic acid, retinoids, corticosteroids and hydroquinone that helps in lightening the dark patches.
- Cosmetic Procedures: If your patches are a little too dark than usual, you could opt for cosmetic procedures that are relatively faster in reducing such ugly patches. Go for laser therapy, chemical peels, intense pulsed light and/or microdermabrasion. However, before you proceed to do so, make sure to consult with a skincare specialist or a dermatologist to discuss the side effects of these treatments.
Home Remedies for Hyperpigmentation:
This is probably what you were looking for all this while. Yes, there are home remedies that you can get rid of hyperpigmentation and the good news is, most of these remedies are very much effective.
Again, before you proceed to treat your hyperpigmentation through such home remedies, make sure to try it on a small patch of skin at first. This is for you to experiment if your skin can take the tenderness of whatever you are about to apply.
- Aloe Vera: Just like aloe vera is useful in treating many other skin problems, hyperpigmentation is no exception. Aloesin present in aloe vera works by impeding the production of melanin in your skin. If you have an aloe vera plant at home, you can apply it directly onto your skin daily. Although there is no medical evidence that supports the effectiveness of using aloe vera on hyperpigmentation.
- Liquorice: As per research, glabridin, liquorice extracts have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and skin-whitening effects that are effective in reducing hyperpigmentation. You can even apply creams that contain glabridin on hyperpigmented areas of your skin. Such products are readily available online.
- Green Tea: Last but not least, green tea extracts are amazing when it comes to improving hyperpigmentation. As you may already know, green tea contains antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties, it can certainly help in improving melasma and sunburn.
Types and Symptoms:
Here’s a table for your better understanding of the common types of hyperpigmentation and its symptoms:
| Type | Symptom | Where on your body? | How it can affect? |
| Age spots (also known as liver spots or solar lentigines) | These are brown/tan spots that are visible on your skin due to sun overexposure | They mostly appear on your face, sun-exposed areas and hands | Age spots, as the name suggests, mostly appear on older adults or after a person has been overexposed to the sun |
| Melasma (also known as chloasma or “the mask of pregnancy) | Usually large patches on tanned skin | You will see them appearing on forehead, stomach and of course, face | Women, who are taking birth control pills, pregnant and people with darker skin colour are likely to develop melasma |
| Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation | Spots or patches are a side effect of eczema or acne | Normally appear on the face and neck | People who have had injuries on their skin or inflammation. |
Causes of Hyperpigmentation:
It all depends on what type of hyperpigmentation you have got, but we have listed some of the common causes. Check and see if yours matches with any of them from the below:
- Sun Exposure: When you are overexposed to the sun, your skin produces more melanin than required in order to protect your skin by itself. Therefore, dark spots become visible and leave patches on your skin.
- Skin Inflammation: Some areas of your skin can darken if you have had inflammation on your skin. It includes acne, lupus, eczema or any other injury to your skin. Therefore, people with darker skin are more susceptible to have post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation.
- Melasma: These dark patches form if you go through unexpected hormonal changes. This is much more common during pregnancy.
- Reactions to drug use: Some medications like antidepressants and antimalarial drugs may cause hyperpigmentation. Usually, these patches turn grey.
- Medical conditions: Some serious causes of hyperpigmentation are Addison’s disease and hemochromatosis. Addison’s disease works on the adrenal glands and causes hyperpigmentation in some parts of the body such as elbows and knees, folds of skin, lips, toes, knuckles and inside of the cheek.
Diagnosis:
The first thing that you must do is go see a doctor once you identify the causes and types of hyperpigmentation. The doctor might take a small sample of your skin to examine the cause of your hyperpigmentation. Your skin care specialist might also use a special kind of light called Wood’s light to examine your skin. Consequently, your dermatologist will create a treatment plan for you as necessary.
Final Words
It’s pretty common for you to get hyperpigmentation. Plus, it’s not very harmful to your skin and you can even get rid of it through creams, home remedies and other effective treatments.
Seek a doctor’s advice if you notice symptoms of hyperpigmentation.