Vitamin C is an essential nutrient. This nutrient not only helps your immune system and encourages collagen and iron absorption but also the growth and development of crucial tissues. Vitamin C is an integral part of young skin. It makes the skin smooth and even, a great way to treat acne. Vitamin C serum is both valuable and affordable for hyperpigmentation.
What Is Hyperpigmentation?
Melanin gives your skin color. Dark patches form when this pigment is in excess in different bodily parts. This is hyperpigmentation, a harmless problem that affects many people. Due to the unevenness of skin tone, it is a common condition, but many individuals find it embarrassing. Your face changes all the time. New skin cells are formed in the lower layers of the epidermis and migrate upwards towards the skin surface, where they die and are sloughed off. Melanocytes are found deep in the epidermis. People with darker skin have melanocytes that generate more melanin than those with lighter skin. People with darker skin are more protected from the sun than those with pale skin because melanin synthesis is stimulated by exposure to the sun and radiation. This condition is more frequent in those with colorful skin.
Hyperpigmentation: What Is the Cause?
Hyperpigmentation occurs when melanocytes in melanosomes are activated by UV radiation, skin damage, infection, or inflammation. Melanin production is the primary purpose of melanocytes. This mode of action is the same regardless of cause or situation.
Acne
Inflammatory skin conditions, like acne, increase the chance of hyperpigmentation. During the mending process, this inflammation makes the body more melanin, making the skin darker in some places. This discoloration appears as black patches in darker skin tones and red spots in lighter skin tones. It can be reduced by treating inflammation immediately.
Aging
Extrinsic variables like sun exposure and environmental contaminants, paired with intrinsic factors such as heredity and hormones, take their toll on the skin and accelerate aging. Age and sun spots appear as a defense mechanism to shield skin from further injury. Skin can also become unevenly colored or mottled due to changes in pigment distribution and turnover.
Hormonal effects
When a woman has her period, is pregnant, or is going through menopause, her progesterone and estrogen levels rise. This makes more melanin, which causes the skin to get too dark in some places. This also happens with melasma. Due to its prevalence in pregnant women, brown patches of pigmented skin occur around the eyes, nose, and cheeks, known as the mask of pregnancy. The sun makes conditions worse.
Other reason
Hyperpigmentation is a common sign of some diseases, like cancer, Addison's disease, a rare problem of the endocrine system, and acanthosis nigricans, which causes dark patches of skin to form in body folds. Some drugs, like non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), antipsychotics, and tetracyclines, have also been known to cause hyperpigmentation.
Types of Hyperpigmentation
Melasma, sun spots, and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation are the three most common types of hyperpigmentation.
Melasma
Many individuals confuse melasma and hyperpigmentation, yet they are the same thing. Many women have melasma, also called "the mask of pregnancy," due to increased melanin production during pregnancy. But this kind of hyperpigmentation can also appear on the belly and other skin parts. It is more common in women due to hormone swings during pregnancy, which cause melanin overproduction. 10–15% of pregnant women and 10–25% of women who take oral contraception get melasma.
Sunspots
Sunspots are a common type of hyperpigmentation. They are also called solar lentigines or liver spots. They are caused by long-term sun exposure and occur on exposed skin areas such as the face, décolleté, and hands.
Post Inflammatory hyperpigmentation
Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation is a skin condition caused by inflammation or injury, such as acne. When a wound heals from a skin injury, acne, chemical contact, or dermatitis, the skin may be darker and have a different color. This is called PIH which happens because the inflammation makes the body more melanin. Some cosmetic treatments, like chemical peels and dermabrasion, can also cause this kind of hyperpigmentation.
How Can Vitamin C Treat Hyperpigmentation?
Vitamin C is an antioxidant with many anti-aging and anti-inflammatory qualities. This makes it suitable for bright, even skin. Applying vitamin C serum to the skin can help lessen the effects of hyperpigmentation. The nutrient lowers the effects of melanin to reduce the dark pigment without changing your original skin tone, making it an ideal treatment for skin disorders such as hyperpigmentation. Vitamin C supplements taken orally are typically ineffective for treating skin conditions, so the most effective way to use Vitamin C serum is to apply it directly to the skin.
Adding Vitamin C + E ferulic acid serum and Hyaluronic acid serum to your beauty routine have many benefits. It also enhances skin tone to reduce acne and boost collagen production for younger-looking skin. Contact your dermatologist to discuss your hyperpigmentation treatment options so you can determine when to use Vitamin C serum.
