Caring for dark skin

Dark skin or black skin is commonly seen in the natives of Africa, some of the races in Australia, in the African American race in the US, and people from the Caribbean and other islands. These people have a very high amount of melanin in their skin. Melanin is the substance that gives color to the skin so an increased amount of it makes the skin colored black. Melanin is responsible for blocking the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays from producing free radicals on the skin surface and harming the outermost layer of cells of the skin. It makes the skin look younger since it slows the effects of aging. It is no wonder that black people always look younger than their white skinned counterpart. But when black people age, they have an irregular pigmentation of their skin, appearing as dark patches on the skin. These dark patches are sometimes too light or too dark, depending on the skin tone. There are still different dark shades. Sometimes, it is also caused by an inflammation or infection. As the area of the skin is inflamed and red from an insect bite, acne, trauma or other causes, it becomes dark brown as the redness and inflammation subsides.

Dark skin is prone to irregular pigmentations and melanomas. In pregnant women, a dark spot often occurs around the neck area, which does not go away unless she gives birth and it is treated with calamine lotion to prevent itchiness. Birth control pills and estrogen hormonal treatment can also be a factor in causing irregular pigmentations by altering hormone content in the body, thus leading to discoloration in the skin.

To be able to treat this type of affliction, all you need is tretinoin. Tretinoin is applied to skin several times a day for several days to weeks and months, depending on the depth of irregular skin pigmentation. Skin lighteners and bleaching creams all contain steroids which may further damage your skin. They can even cause irreversible skin redness, thinning and blood vessel streaks. Also, avoid those products that use mercury as an ingredient since this substance is extremely poisonous and corrosive.

Having black and dark skin is also beautiful especially when the undertones in dark skin are thoroughly understood. The best type of skin care available for all types of skin, may it be black or white is keeping it clean and free from any dirt and harmful deposits.

Maintaining the cleanliness of the skin helps a great deal in maintaining its health. A lot of dark skinned people often neglect to clean their skin since the dirt is hardly visible on the skin. The darker your skin is, the more you should be cleaning it. There is no excuse in having dirty skin since dark skin is never synonymous to having filthy skin.

Treatment of black skin is basically the same as the treatment with any other skin type. It is just the skin care products that vary. Knowing which product works best on your skin is the first step to proper skin treatment and maintenance. Understanding your skin type affects the decisions you make on skin care since you will have to experiment on which shades will best complement your natural dark skin tone.

There are specific products to care for black skin. Taking care of the dark skin of African Americans is very different from the products of Caucasians and Asians. Black skin care products contain heavy oils that are formulated to penetrate the skin deeply and nourish the skin from the inside, but without the oily feeling that you get in using oil based skin products. Oil from the emu has been tested to be one of the highly recommended ingredients in skin care products for black and dark skin.

Due to their ability to not be easily affected by the sun’s rays, dark skinned people are prone to staying under the sun for a prolonged period of time. Too much sun is also dangerous to the skin, even for black skin since the heat and the UV rays will bombard the skin into giving in and thus becoming affected by it. The UV rays damage the collagen and elastin molecules in the skin, leading to the sagging and loss of elasticity of the skin. This is seen as having stretch marks, loose skin, and fat deposits around the waist, breasts, stomach, thighs, face and neck area. This is why sunscreen is also suggested to people with dark skin to be able to protect them further from a prolonged exposure to the sun’s rays.

Hydroquinone is also a substance that can help lighten dark areas of the skin to be able to have dark skin that is constant in color and not with patches and different shades of black. You just have to apply this regularly to the affected area. Hyperpigmentation can also be addressed by the new Obagi Nu-derm System which treats hyperpigmentation easily through a series of tests and treatments.

Another type of treatment is the application of Jessner’s solution on the skin. This solution is used to lighten certain areas with hyperpigmentation plus treat aged skin due to damage from the sun through mild skin peeling. Before using this solution, the skin should first be treated with Retin-A or tretinoin for two to three weeks to prepare it. During treatment, it is advised not to sunbathe to avoid sunburn and to avoid places where you can hurt and damage your skin.

Jessner’s solution is to be applied using a gauze strip, two to three times on the face, neck and other areas to be treated. It is to be left for ten minutes before rinsing it off using cool water. Direct sunlight should be avoided for at least a week and Vaseline applied daily as a thin coat for four more days. Peeling should be done in four weeks intervals, depending on the size of the skin affected. The Jessner’s solution should be stored in a dark cool place, away from direct sunlight, and has a shelf life of two to three years. It works best on areas damaged most by the sun. It should be avoided on the eyes and genitals.