Discolorations – they ruin everything, it’s really hard to camouflage them with regular make-up, and to make the matters even worse, sometimes they can be a sign of a developing disease. When we eventually make up our mind and start fighting with this kind of beauty enemy, it’s wiser to get to know it better to have the advantage over it. Where do discolorations come from?
My problem with skin hyperpigmentation marks lasted really long. If it had been freckles only, I would have coped with this somehow, I guess. Yet, my face frequently housed dark skin marks or very disturbing, fair spots. Keep reading to find out how I managed to do with the blemishes.
SKIN DISCOLOURATIONS
How do they develop? Some of such marks are inborn, the other part is obtained as a consequence of exposing skin to damaging factors (in most cases it’s due to the sun). Intensity and the number of discolorations depend on the pigment skin contains – melanin. This very substance is also responsible for our skin getting tanned. Local excess or lack of melanin, which can be described as disturbed functioning of melanocytes, is a direct and prime cause of discolorations. However, it’s worth getting bogged down with this issue to learn how to fight back the enemy.
The most common causes of discolorations are:
- UV radiation (excessive solar exposition),
- hyperthyroidism or liver diseases,
- cosmetics, medication or herbs that are photo-sensitive,
- contraception and other hormone therapies,
- hormone level fluctuations connected with menopause or pregnancy.
Since we know the leading causes of discolorations, now, it’ll become much easier to combat them. As usual, the most important rule says: prevent. We have to minimise everything which can have even marginal impact on discolouration development. In my case, it was getting my thyroid gland into the right track, since I had found that this gland didn’t function properly. Guess what! From the moment my thyroid has started producing hormones correctly, the discolorations decreased in size! Girls, think for a while and try to come up with what is responsible for the blemishes that appear on your face and body. Maybe you overdo with sunbathing? Perhaps the blame can be put on contraception pills?
Feminine problem
Sadly, these are women who are significantly more prone to discolorations than men, which I consider as a massive unfairness; especially that men don’t care if their skin features one more mark or not. Unfortunately, we, the women, are more discolouration-prone because of various kinds of hormonal disorders we tend to experience throughout our lives often. While I was flicking through scientific journals, I found out that even our ovary can initiate the process of intensified melanin production. And what can we do about this? Balance the level of hormones. Easier said than done?
Types of skin discolorations
It isn’t only the source of discolouration that matters but also the sort of these blemishes. The most frequently appeared skin discolorations are dark spots which are connected with the huge amount of pigment the tissue features. These include:
• FRECKLES – tiny, irregular spots of brown tinge which frequently appear on cheeks, nose, forearms or face. We inherit these, yet they often come into existence as a consequence of overexposing our skin to the solar radiation. Therefore, during the summer our face may feature more freckles than in the winter.
• LENTIGO – they appear as a consequence of an organism growing in years, under the influence of some diseases or solar radiation. They can be recognized by the fact that don’t get darker when exposed to the sun. When it comes to their location, they appear on the dorsal parts of hands forearms and face.
• CHLOASMA – this type of discolorations affects skin as a result of hormonal fluctuations during pregnancy, menopause or during contraception treatment. Chloasma is irregular in shape, which clearly stands out from the healthy parts of skin. Most frequently, they appear on forehead, cheeks and upper lip.
• POST-INFLAMMATORY HYPERPIGMENTATION – as it is not hard to guess, this kind of blemishes appears where inflammation used to be. Frequently, they are the aftermath of acne or develop where we scalded ourselves, were skin was affected by rash or chickenpox.
• PHOTOTOXIC HYPERPIGMENTATION – this appears rarely since they come into existence as a result of drinking herbs, applying cosmetics or taking medication featuring photosensitive substances. When it comes to the herbs which can encourage discolorations, these are St John’s wort, sage and Norwegian angelica.
My ways of dealing with skin discolorations ☺
What can I advise when it comes to hyperpigmentation issue? As mentioned above, in my case, it was enough to minimize the factors which negatively influenced my skin’s condition. I guess, I’ll sound like an old, round-shouldered and grumpy doctor but… prophylaxis is crucial! There is no point in fighting the discolorations back since they are already on our face. It’s wiser to prevent them. How? For example, avoid the sun or protect your skin from it by applying sunscreens. Also, refrain from solarium and react fast to any discolouration you manage to notice. Moreover, I encourage you to visit a dermatologist, especially when all the home remedies don’t work. Oh, I haven’t mentioned them yet! Well, here is a list of the most effective ways of dealing with discolorations:
- Applying creams that light skin up; they contain fruit acids and vitamin C.
- Cavitation peeling (to be undergone at a beauty parlour).
- Homemade toner for discolorations containing lemon, apple and tomato juice.
- Face mask for discolorations with yoghurt, honey, grated lemon and potato.
- Whitening face mask made of fresh cucumber slices.
- Rubbing a baking soda and water pulp into the discolorations.
- Honey and almond paste (2:1).
To sum up, there are as many ideas for coping with hyperpigmentation as we have substances of lightening up features at our disposal. And this is the very reason why you can create and freely modify your home remedies aiming skin discolorations. I encourage you to share your ideas concerning removing the discussed skin blemishes. Perhaps I’ll make use of them one day :):)
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