Hyperpigmentation is a common and usually harmless condition. When you have it, patches of skin become darker than the surrounding normal skin. This darkening occurs when excess melanin, the brown pigment that gives skin its normal color, forms deposits on the skin. Hyperpigmentation can affect people of all races and ethnicities.

1. What is hyperpigmentation?

The condition that causes darkening of the skin is called hyperpigmentation. It can be small patches, covering large areas of skin, or it can affect the entire body. Hyperpigmentation is usually harmless, but it can be a symptom of another health condition.

There are several types of hyperpigmentation that you may experience, including:

• Melasma: This is caused by hormonal changes during pregnancy. Hyperpigmentation is most common on the abdomen and face, but can occur on any area of ​​the body.
• Sunburn: This is caused by prolonged exposure to the sun. Hyperpigmentation appears as spots on sun-exposed areas such as the hands and face
• Acne scars: This is often the result of skin damage.

Melasma is a sign of skin hyperpigmentation.

2. Causes of Hyperpigmentation

Sunspots are a common form of hyperpigmentation. They occur as a result of sun damage. These small, dark patches of skin are often found on the hands, face, or other areas of the body that are frequently exposed to the sun.

Melasma – This condition is similar to melasma, but these are larger areas of darkened skin and are often caused by hormonal changes. For example, when you are pregnant, it can trigger an overproduction of melanin, causing melasma. Taking birth control pills can also cause hyperpigmentation because they can undergo hormonal changes similar to those during pregnancy. If hyperpigmentation is severe, you should stop taking birth control pills.

Skin discoloration can be caused by external factors. For example, skin conditions such as acne can leave dark spots behind after the condition clears. Other causes of skin pigmentation include injury to the skin, including some surgeries. Freckles are small brown spots that can appear anywhere on the body, but are most common on the face and arms. Freckles are a genetic trait.

Genetics may be the cause of freckles.

Freckles, age spots and other dark patches of skin can become darker or more pronounced when the skin is exposed to the sun. This happens because melanin absorbs the energy of the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays to protect the skin from overexposure. The usual result of this process is melasma, which tends to darken areas that are already hyperpigmented.

Specialized skin cells called melanocytes produce melanin (hyperpigmentation), which causes the skin to darken when exposed to sunlight. In some people with fair skin, some melanocytes produce more melanin than others in response to sunlight. Freckles occur because of this uneven melanin production and are often hereditary. Depending on the type, the actual cause of hyperpigmentation varies greatly.

Causes of localized hyperpigmentation include:

• Sun exposure
• Dermatitis
• Skin trauma
• Abnormal skin growths

Some injuries such as cuts, burns, or inflammation from disorders such as acne or lupus can also cause hyperpigmentation after they have disappeared. Some people’s skin becomes more sensitive to certain plants such as lemons, celery, etc. that contain furocoumarin compounds than to the effects of ultraviolet light. This condition is called photoallergic contact dermatitis. The skin becomes thicker and darker in the armpits and back of the neck in people with acanthosis nigricans. Acanthosis nigricans can also be a symptom of diabetes.

Increased lentigines are the cause of darkening of the skin with oval, brown spots.

• Sun-induced hyperpigmentation is the most common type of hyperpigmentation. Most often this condition occurs in middle-aged people and increases in number as you get older. People with melanocytes may have a higher than normal risk of melanoma, although these melanocytes are benign.
• Skin darkening can also occur due to lentigines if you have certain genetic disorders, such as Peutz-Jegherssyndrome (characterized by many lentigines on the lips and polyps in the stomach and intestines), xeroderma pigmentosum, and multiple lentigines syndrome (LEOPARD syndrome). Doctors can remove them with freezing treatment (cryotherapy) or laser therapy if there are not too many lentigines.

Sunlight increases lentigines which cause skin darkening.

Other causes of widespread hyperpigmentation include:

• Hormonal changes
• Medical conditions
• Drugs, chemicals, and heavy metals

Increased melanin production and darkening of the skin due to hormonal changes can occur in people with Addison’s disease, pregnancy, or the use of hormonal contraceptives. Some cases of primary biliary cirrhosis can also cause increased melanin production.

In some cases, melanin is not the cause of hyperpigmentation, but rather other pigments that are not normally present in the skin. Hyperpigmentation can occur in people with conditions such as hemochromatosis or hemosiderosis, which are caused by too much iron in the body. Certain medications, chemicals, and metals that are applied to the skin, taken orally, or injected can also cause hyperpigmentation.

The area of ​​hyperpigmentation is usually widespread, but some medications can affect specific areas. For example, some people have certain drug reactions, in which certain medications (such as some antibiotics, NSAIDs, and barbiturates) cause localized hyperpigmentation in the same place each time the medication is used.

Hyperpigmented skin can appear purple, bluish-black, yellow-brown, or shades of blue, silver, and gray depending on the drug, chemical, or metal and where it is concentrated on the skin. In addition to the skin, areas of discoloration can occur on the teeth, nails, whites of the eyes (sclera), and lining of the mouth (mucosa). In some cases, the hyperpigmentation usually disappears after stopping the medication. However, in other cases, the hyperpigmentation is permanent.

3. Treating Hyperpigmentation

You can control hyperpigmentation through the following measures:

• Avoid sun exposure. Use sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher when going out during the day to protect your skin and prevent melasma.
• Do not touch or pick your skin. Avoid picking or touching spots, scales, and acne to prevent hyperpigmentation from forming after skin damage.
• You can reduce skin pigmentation by using aloe vera. Aloeshim in aloe vera helps reduce skin pigmentation by inhibiting melanin production in the skin. Aloe vera gel can be applied to the skin daily.
• Creams containing licorice extract can help reduce skin pigmentation. Some studies have shown that licorice extract (glabridin) has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and skin-whitening effects. You can use creams containing glabridin on areas of hyperpigmentation.
• Green Tea: Hyperpigmentation can be improved with the use of green tea extract products due to the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of green tea. However, green tea extract is very limited in improving melasma and reducing sunburn.

Using aloe vera gel helps improve skin hyperpigmentation