How to Treat Hyperpigmentation

Eventually, we all are going to get it . Age spots, sun spots, and uneven skin is just a fact of life . The cosmetic industry has come along way over the years and with it, they have ways to not only treat hyperpigmentation due to environmental facts, they may also treat it internally as well. Treating hyperpigmentation doesn’t have to mean hundreds of dollars in dermatologist bills. Natural ingredients can sometimes do the job of what would otherwise be hundreds of dollars in money spent.

So What is Hyperpigmentation?

Basically, the age spots and liver spots you see, which is very common by the way, are the result of too much melanin in your skin. Melanin is what makes us “brown” and gives our skin color. Usually, our melanin production is fairly even in our younger years. As we age, the distribution can start to become splotchy, which results in some areas being darker that others, hence we get the word “age spots”. Sun exposure will only aggrevate this situation further and sun spots form on our face and arms.

The key is to reduce or eliminate melanin production

If you have age spots, there are plenty of ways to either diminish the effects or elmintate them altogether . If you go to a dermatologist, chances are they are going to use a professional grade acid peel to lift the dead skin first. The problem with this type of treatment is that it can get expensive. An alternative that many women use is to take over the counter skin whitening products to help even out skin tone Add a weekly exfoliation treatment with something like a Kojic Acid Lotion and I think you will be as satisfied as a professional visit to a skin doctor.

Stop the production of melanin with these Skin Ingredients

10 years ago, if you were to look at a skin whitener’s ingredients, you would find that the most likely ingredient would be hydroquinone . This ingredient works because it inhibits the production of melanin which, in turn, prevents darker spots from forming in the first place. The United States is the only place you can legally get it though. Despite this, there are some natural ingredients that will inhibit melanin and that are legal. Kojic acid, for instance, is a very new and popular skin whitener and incidentally, is very popular in Asia. The funny thing is that most of these natural sources for evening skin tone work because broken down chemically, they are the same .

One word of warning…

Just because something is “natural” doesn’t necessarily indicate good to use. You should always do a spot test to make sure your skin reacts well with the lotion. Some lotions and acid peels can redden and irritate sensitive skin. Also, although natural creams containing things like Alpha Arbutin seems to be a safe alternative to hydroquinone , realize that these are “newer” products and testing hasn’t officially confirmed that they are totally safe .

Exfoliate and diminish hyperpigmented skin even more

While skin whitening creams can work by themselves, sometimes the better option is to add something that exfoliates the skin . Adding a weekly glycolic acid peel at home could produce clearer, younger looking skin . In addition to this, there are some face products that you can use daily as well for clearer skin and help even out skin tone . For example, you could use a kojic acid soap. Totally safe for daily use.

For more ways to even out your skin tone if you have age spots or how to treat hyperpigmentation, click here .