Loss of Skin Pigmentation: Why does it happen?

Melanin gives us the color of our skin, our eyes, and our hair. It’s what makes a person white, black, brown, red, or yellow, or gives them red versus blonde hair, etc. Loss of skin pigmentation can be caused by several types of conditions: vitiligo, melasma, and age spots.

Firstly, vitiligo is one of the most common causes of loss of skin pigmentation. Vitiligo is caused by destruction of melanin in the skin. Indications of vitiligo are white spots on the skin. This condition is usually more prominent in darker-skinned individuals. This skin condition is usually inherited. This condition affects about 1-2% of the American population-one of the most famous pop icons ever, the late Michael Jackson, had this skin condition. Once the white spots on the skin form, it is impossible to reverse the loss of skin pigmentation because no exact treatment for the reversal of this condition has yet been found.

Vitiligo can also affect the color in your hair and eyes. It most commonly affects areas of the skin which are most exposed to the sun, as well as one’s underarms, near moles, and orficies, such as one’s mouth. There are treatments, however, for vitiligo-such as skin grafts, cosmetics, and steroid creams.

Melasma is another cause for loss of skin pigmentation. It is a common condition which affects mostly women. Grey-brown to brown patches appear on the skin, and like vitiligo, it also affects people with darker skin pigmentation. Only about 10% of men will ever have melasma.

Causes of this condition are still widely unknown, but again, like with vitiligo, it also seems to be a genetic skin condition. Women who are pregnant can develop melasma for a short period of time, a condition also known as chloasma. Cosmetics, birth control pills, and hormone drugs can also contribute to melasma. Melasma is not as permanent, however, as vitiligo. It can appear momentarily if a woman is pregnant or taking birth control pills, and will sometimes go away on its own when the woman has her baby or stops taking the birth control.

Age spots, with which many people are familiar, are also another common manifestation of change in skin pigmentation. While they are usually harmless, they can take on the guise of seeming cancerous.

They are easily treated as well by lightening with bleach treatments or surgical removal. Avoiding the sun will keep the appearance of age spots from forming. Avoid the sun by using sunscreen or staying out during the hottest hours of the day. While vitiligo and melasma can affect younger people, age spots usually affect those around their forties.

In summary, take care of your skin! Use sun block and avoid harmful UV rays which can utterly destroy your skin. If you are young and use a tanning bed, do not stay in it an excessive amount of time because you will ruin your skin. If you are worried about possibly having melasma or vitiligo, causing loss of skin pigmentation, look into your family history.