You know those dark, hard-to-get-rid-of spots on your skin that surface after too much time in the sun or a bad breakout? That’s hyperpigmentation, a common type of skin pigment that affects millions of people annually. Pigmentation can occur anywhere on the face and body and, more times than not, is related to an inflammatory trigger that sets off a cascade of actions sending the pigment-producing departments of the skin into a tizzy. The result? Dark spots, melasma patches and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation can mar your skin despite your best efforts.
Even if you’ve tried to improve your complexion and only saw a slight improvement, the secret to really improving hyperpigmentation and garnering clearer, more even-toned skin lies in devising a proper skincare treatment protocol specific to your skin. Although the options for treating skin pigmentation are more accessible and varied than ever before, it still comes down to stopping the proliferation of melanin at the source.
Table of Contents:
- What is Skin Pigmentation, and What Causes It?
- What Are the Different Types of Skin Pigmentation?
- Treat Hyperpigmentation with an Effective Skincare Routine
- Advanced Treatments for Skin Pigmentation
- Hyperpigmentation Prevention
- The Bottom Line
What is Skin Pigmentation, and What Causes It?
Skin pigmentation is the color of the skin. Some skin tones naturally have more pigment than others, which is genetically predetermined, giving them a darker coloration. Regardless of your skin’s natural tone, all skin tones and types contain melanin, which gives the skin its color.
Deep within the skin are small pigment-making factories loaded with melanin (there are two types, eumelanin and pheomelanin). Specific cells, known as melanocytes, are responsible for creating melanin, and this production cycle gets thrown into overdrive, and melanin production revs up, causing discoloration or skin pigmentation. When a trigger sets the pigment cycle into production mode, the result is either dark or light spots on the skin or even patches. In some cases, white spots can ensue. Depending on the type of meaning that’s triggered dictates the color of pigment on the skin. Eumelanin creates a brown or black coloration on the skin, and pheomelanin leaves behind a red or yellow tone.
When the skin experiences pigmentation, it can manifest on the skin as:
- Brown spots
- Dark freckles and marks
- Discolored patches of skin
- Areas of unusual lightening of the skin
Skin pigmentation can be either local or diffuse, appearing as small spots and patches or larger areas of pigmentation.
Several different factors cause skin pigmentation, including:
- Inflammation: Any time there is trauma to the skin, which can include acne, burns, cuts, or blisters, the skin responds to it by turning on its inflammation factors which ‘turn on’ pigment-producing cells. The result? Dark spots are left behind, usually for some time, indicating that the injury has healed. Discoloration that results from pigmentation is known as post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH).
- Sun exposure: When the skin is exposed to the sun’s UV damage, it produces melanin production for self-defense. Yes, the increase in melanin is responsible for a golden tan, but it’s also what causes dark spots and sunspots to start to appear.
- Melasma: Known as the mask of pregnancy, melasma is a patchy grouping of light to dark brown pigment on the skin typically found on the forehead and cheeks. While increased hormones due to birth control or pregnancy are the driving force behind melasma, sun exposure can also worsen the condition.
- Certain medical conditions: Sometimes, excessive pigmentation in the skin is linked to certain medical diseases and conditions. For example, Addison’s disease, which is adrenal gland disorder, can cause increased melanin production and, therefore, more than normal amounts of pigmentation in the skin. Similarly, specific types of antibiotics, medications, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and even chemotherapy medications can also up the potential for skin pigmentation.
- Genetics: In some skin pigmentation cases, genetics are to blame, and the skin is pre-programmed to produce more than average amounts of melanin, even if it is not exposed to one of the common triggers.
Any one, or a combination, of pigmentation-producing factors, can cause an overproduction of melanin and, eventually, uneven skin tone. Once the skin recognizes a trigger, it sends a message to turn on the hormones that control melanin production. Then, pigment production begins, and tiny packages of melanin are made, called melanosomes. These bundles of pigment then get dispersed throughout the different layers of skin, usually trying to make their way from the dermis to the superficial layer (when the pigment is lower in the skin, it’s harder to lighten), resulting in skin pigmentation. Since the skin isn’t equipped to evenly distribute the pigment in a uniform layer, small spots and patches of discoloration often result. The more the cycle transpires, the more pigmentation is evident on the skin and the darker it can become. Skin pigmentation usually doesn’t lighten on its own, which is where skin brightening and pigment-reducing skincare products come into play.
To effectively treat pigmentation in your skin, it’s essential to determine the cause of it in the first place. From there, you should devise a well-rounded treatment approach to lighten existing pigmentation and prevent future spots and discoloration from forming after that.
What Are the Different Types of Skin Pigmentation?
Pigmentation isn’t the same from one person to the next, and how discoloration manifests in the skin is usually due to the root cause. The most common types of skin pigmentation include:
- Sunspots: Anytime the sun creates an abundance of melanin, the skin displays signs of extra pigment (hyperpigmentation). The more sun exposure the skin receives over time, the harder it is for the skin to monitor and control melanin production. Once UV exposure reaches its maximum capacity, the skin produces dark spots and even patches on the face, chest, and hands, known as sunspots or solar lentigines. The same effect can occur from blue light exposure.
- Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH): Inflammatory triggers that result in inflammation in the skin can leave behind stubborn dark spots. While PIH can affect all skin tones, it’s more common in darker skin with naturally higher pigment levels. PIH is common in acne and scars.
- Melasma: Melasma appears on the skin as a light to dark brown or black pigment patch and usually worsens with sun exposure.
- Hypopigmentation: Hypopigmentation occurs due to low levels of melanin. Excess melanin is produced as a response to a trigger, but when the skin is deficient in pigment, the area can appear lighter in color. Hypopigmentation can result from skin injury, inflammation, and inflammatory conditions like eczema, psoriasis, and albinism.
- Depigmentation: When the skin loses its ability to create melanin altogether, depigmentation occurs. Rather than the skin reacting to a trigger and creating pigment that darkens the skin, the area typically turns white. Some conditions, like vitiligo, are forms of depigmentation.
Of all the different types of skin pigmentation, hyperpigmentation is the most common. That’s because so many factors can instigate hyperpigmentation and cause skin darkening. In some cases, the effects of hyperpigmentation are only slightly darker than the skin’s natural tone, while in others, it is a more noticeable difference. Also, when hyperpigmentation persists, only certain skin areas are usually affected. However, treating hyperpigmentation is important, and the quicker you can get ahead of it, the better since pigmentation becomes more stubborn and more difficult to treat the longer it is visible on the skin.
Treat Hyperpigmentation with an Effective Skincare Routine
The key to lightening hyperpigmentation is to instill a proper skincare routine that tackles discoloration at the source and prevents new pigment from forming. Naturally, since the causes of hyperpigmentation vary from one person to the next, the solutions for improving it will too. Some discoloration can start to fade with the integration of just a few ingredients, while others may require a trip to the dermatologist’s office, too. Word to the wise: be patient when treating hyperpigmentation since it takes time and patience for the pigment to begin to fade.
Gentle Cleansing and Exfoliation
Step number one in an effective skincare routine that treats hyperpigmentation is cleansing. A good, mild cleanser always is the starting point for prepping the skin to receive active ingredients and treatment products.
With clean skin in tow, it’s time to exfoliate it to help lift the existing pigment from the skin’s surface and fade it while promoting cellular turnover. Since pigment gets trapped in the skin cells, exfoliating them off the surface is a tried-and-true way of brightening the skin. Make sure to use a chemical exfoliator with alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs) like glycolic, lactic, citric, and malic acids or beta hydroxy acids (BHAs), such as salicylic acid, to fade the discoloration and remove the outermost layer of skin. Removing old, dead skin cells packed with pigment will allow room for fresh, new skin cells to emerge and give the skin a more even tone and smoothness. Make sure not to over-exfoliate the skin or use aggressive exfoliating agents, which can promote additional hyperpigmentation and even skin damage.