Have you ever woken up and looked in the mirror and thought to yourself, ‘when did my skin get so blotchy?’ It’s likely that you have an uneven skin tone. Here Dr Saleena Zimri, Lumenis ambassador, explains how it happens, and how it can be treated.
What is an uneven skin tone?
When your skin is exposed to certain elements, it can cause uneven skin tone and hyperpigmentation, which is irregular darkening of the skin caused by an overproduction of melanin. Plainly put, when your skin doesn’t like its environment or conditions it may react negatively, which leads to that “blotchy skin”.
What causes uneven skin tone?
“Sometimes an uneven skin tone happens due to external factors and sometimes it has to do with internal factors. Some key contributing factors include:
- Overexposure to the sun
When you’re exposed to too much UV light, melanin production speeds up to protect your skin, and it causes brown spots and an uneven skin tone. - Pollution
When you come in contact with particles and gasses from traffic related air pollution, they can penetrate the skin and form brown spots, likely on the face. - Post-inflammatory Pigmentation
After you suffer from a skin injury or acne scarring, a result may be a darkening of the skin in that area. - Hormones
Hormone-related hyperpigmentation is known as melasma and is often found in women who are pregnant but can also be a side effect of certain cosmetics or medications, like contraception. - Age
When you don’t protect your skin from internal and external elements, like the sun and continual use of certain medications, you may have uneven skin tone as you age”
How can I treat uneven skin tone?
- “Wear sunscreen every day
Make sure to incorporate sunscreen into your morning skincare routine to protect your skin against UV light. UV light is what activates melanin production in your skin, which can cause brown spots. - Don’t pick your skin
Whether it’s a pimple, dryness, or acne, picking your skin or popping a spot can cause redness and irritation to the skin. Doing so can worsen your condition and your struggle with hyperpigmentation will continue.
3. Avoid certain foods
If you find yourself struggling with uneven skin tones all of a sudden and you have a balanced skincare routine and you aren’t pregnant, the food you ate may be triggering the tone of your skin.
Food to avoid if you’re looking to even out your skin tone include:
- Alcohol
- Spicy food
- Food high in refined sugars
- Overly processed and greasy foods
- Dairy
- Undergo a chemical peel
Chemical Peels remove damaged skin cells on the top layer of your skin to reveal the healthy skin underneath using chemicals. A light chemical peel requires little downtime, but a medium or deep chemical peel can require up to three weeks of recovery. - Try a Photofabulous Laser Facial
Photofabulous™ by Lumenis is an optimally tailored laser treatment that addresses the early signs of ageing and provides noticeable results for pigmentation, age or sunspots, fine lines, and overall skin appearance.
By using both the Stellar M22™ IPL and ResurFX™ non-ablative technologies sequentially in the same treatment session, both skin pigmentation and texture can be treated, simultaneously. Initiating new collagen production is the key to having more radiant, youthful-looking skin, so the Stellar M22™ IPL removes both unwanted pigmentation and vascular lesions from the skin, while the ResurFX™ fractional laser stimulates the production of new collagen and elastin fibres in the deeper layers of the skin.”
6. Skincare is also important. Add Vitamin C, Retinol and Azelaic acid into your regime, as they can all help with uneven skin tone.”