Causes of hyperpigmentation include: Skin inflammation (post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation) Use of certain drugs (such as minocycline, certain cancer chemotherapies, and birth control pills) Hormone system diseases such as Addison disease.
Addison disease happens when the body doesn't produce enough cortisol, a hormone that regulates stress. One symptom of the disease is darkening of the skin in places like scars, skin folds, elbows, knees, and knuckles.
Lifestyle Habits and Skin Health: Bad habits like smoking, consuming a poor diet, and not bothering with a skincare routine might trigger skin darkening by contributing to factors like inflammation and oxidative skin stress.
Increased Melanin Production: One common reason for skin darkening is increased melanin production. Melanin is the pigment responsible for giving color to our skin. Hormonal changes, certain medications, or underlying medical conditions can trigger an increase in melanin production, leading to darker skin (1).
A change in color perception can be caused by many different eye diseases. Cataracts, glaucoma, retinal disease such as macular degeneration and disease of the optic nerve such as optic neuritis or any other optic nerve problem can cause this.
If you've been wondering, "Why is my skin becoming darker?" without obvious sun exposure, it's essential to understand that several factors could be at play. Your skin can react to many triggers, both internal and external. These include hormonal changes, medications, ageing, and stress.
The hyperpigmentation related to vitamin B12 deficiency is more common in darker-skinned patients. Few other cases of skin hyperpigmentation due to vitamin B12 deficiency have been reported in the literature. The mechanism of hyperpigmentation is due to increased melanin synthesis rather than a defect in melanin.
Addison's disease: It causes patches of dark skin around skin folds or joints. Diabetes rash: If you have diabetes, you may develop discolored skin patches or spots. Medications: Some medications can cause your skin to lighten or darken. Cancer: Certain cancers or paraneoplastic syndromes can cause pigmentary changes.
The incidence of this change varies, and depends on the type of medication involved. Some of the most common drugs involved are NSAIDs, antimalarials, psychotropic drugs, Amiodarone, cytotoxic drugs, tetracyclines, and heavy metals such as silver and gold (which must be ingested, not just worn).
UVA radiation is what makes people tan. UVA rays penetrate to the lower layers of the epidermis, where they trigger cells called melanocytes (pronounced: mel-AN-oh-sites) to produce melanin. Melanin is the brown pigment that causes tanning. Melanin is the body's way of protecting skin from burning.
Call your health care provider for an appointment if you have: Skin discoloration that causes significant concern. Persistent, unexplained darkening or lightening of the skin. Any skin sore or lesion that changes shape, size, or color may be a sign of skin cancer.
As the adrenals fail and cortisol production becomes inadequate, there is increased production of ACTH and concomitantly MSH. The increased level of MSH stimulates melanocytes to produce more pigment, especially in sun-exposed areas, resulting in dark tans, hyperpigmented scars, and gingiva.
The classic dermatologic sign of Addison's disease is diffuse hyperpigmentation of the skin with focal hyperpigmentation of scars, nails, and the oral mucosa.
Eumelanin, on the other hand, is dark brown or black. The ratio between these two types of pigment is what makes the difference in each person's ability to tan. The skin of people with a higher amount of eumelanin will darken faster when exposed to the sun and so they will be more protected from burns.
Uneven pigmentation
To protect itself from the damaging effects of the sun, skin makes more brown pigment, called melanin. That extra melanin is what creates a suntan. But sometimes skin doesn't make melanin evenly. As a result, the skin's coloring, called pigmentation, looks patchy.
Discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE)
This type of skin lupus often produces scarring of the skin and hair loss that can be permanent. In addition, discoid lupus skin lesions often produce darkening and/or lightening of the skin color.
Your skin can develop darker patches as the result of excess melanin production, typically caused by skin inflammation, hormone fluctuations, and poor lifestyle choices.
There are many factors that go into what causes intimate areas to darken, but rest assured it is perfectly normal for private areas to be darker than other skin on your body.
The change in skin tone and complexions happens when there is excess melanin production in the skin cells. There could be possible reasons why your skin cells are overproducing melanin. Medical conditions such as Addison's disease may also cause your skin to become darker in some areas.
Iron, a vital nutrient for our bodies, plays a role in melanin production, the pigment responsible for our skin colour. Some studies have suggested that iron deficiency may lead to increased melanin production, potentially playing a role in the development of melasma.
Causes of hyperpigmentation include: Skin inflammation (post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation) Use of certain drugs (such as minocycline, certain cancer chemotherapies, and birth control pills) Hormone system diseases such as Addison disease.
Estrogen and progesterone are two of the major factors responsible for catamenial hyperpigmentation of the skin.
Dimness of vision may be noted due to muted color vision or gray areas. This is a symptom of a variety of conditions, including amblyopia, optic neuritis, retinal detachment, macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts, or brain tumor.