Causes Of Uneven Skin Tone And Recommended Serums To Treat It

December 19, 2022

Uniformity of skin colour is one of the most significant aspects of a healthy complexion, which is why uneven skin tone can be a source of embarrassment and frustration for many people.

Uneven skin tone can be caused by various factors, including genetics, lack of sleep, and even pollution. While there is no surefire way to correct it, there are a few things you can do to improve your skin's texture and colour, and one way to go about that is by including skin serum for uneven skin tone in your skincare regime.

In this post, we'll discuss the different causes of uneven skin tone and recommendations for serums that can help treat it.

What is an uneven skin tone?

Uneven skin tone is a catch-all term for various skin conditions that trigger irregular skin tone. It is usually characterised by skin discolouration and a change in skin texture. The affected skin is typically visible and distinct from the surrounding areas, with dark patterns or markings of different colours and a rough or spotty texture.

What causes uneven skin tone?

Uneven skin tone and texture can indicate a decline in skin health or damage caused by multiple factors. Let's look at five of the most frequent reasons for uneven skin tone.

Hormonal changes

Hormones play a massive role in the development and function of your body, including your skin. Hormonal changes can cause uneven skin tone, especially if you are experiencing pregnancy, puberty, or menopause.

During these times, your body's levels of oestrogen and progesterone increase significantly. This can lead to an increase in oil production and a decrease in natural hormones such as testosterone and cortisol. These fluctuations can also cause increased pigmentation around the nose and mouth, as well as other irregularities on the skin surface.

Another effect of hormonal changes is the increase in melanin production. Melanin is responsible for giving colour to our skin and hair, and it helps protect against UV damage and cancerous cells. During the hormonal change phases, levels of melanin rise resulting in more intense colours on our face, especially around our cheeks, necklines, and scalp.

Ageing

As we get older, our skin tone can become uneven. This is due to various factors, including changes in the synthesis of melanin (the pigment that gives colour to skin), decreasing blood flow to the skin, and loss of collagen and elastin.

These are among the changes your skin undergoes as you age that lead to uneven skin tone:

• The outer layer of the skin becomes thinner.
• The cells that contain pigments (melanocytes) reduce in number.
• Existing melanocytes on the skin become larger.
• Pigmented spots like "age spots" or "liver spots" will begin to form in areas of your face that are exposed to the sun.

Genetics

Even though the number of cells that produce melanin is almost similar among people, the amount of melanin produced in their cells differs due to the different combinations of their genes. This is why there are so many variations of skin tone and colour.

Just like your hair and eye colour, you largely inherit the colour and tone of your skin from your parents and ancestors. You have dozens of genes that influence your melanin production - in terms of the number of melanin produced and the kind of melanin your body produces. The combination of these genes varies significantly, resulting in a spectrum of skin tones within the same family.

Your skin tone reflects the unique combination of the genes you inherited from your family. Suppose any of your parents or ancestors have suffered from imbalanced melanin production or uneven skin tone due to genetic factors. The chances of you inheriting the skin condition are relatively high.

Lack of sleep

Lack of sleep leads to increased levels of cortisol in your body. Cortisol stimulates oil production in your skin glands, resulting in clogged pores and acne breakouts. It also causes the proteins that keep your skin glowing and smooth to break down. This is why increased cortisol levels make your skin vulnerable to conditions like acne, uneven skin tone and allergic reactions.

Additionally, lack of sleep leads to inefficient blood circulation, resulting in reduced oxygen supply in your blood. This causes your skin to appear pigmented, greyish and blotchy.

Also, when you don't get enough sleep, your body begins to experience stress as it attempts to regain hormonal balance, which affects the collagen in your skin. Collagen is an essential protein composed of amino acids that give the skin structure and elasticity. So, your skin loses firmness and smoothness as collagen degrades.

Pollution

Pollution contains high levels of toxins that are absorbed into the bloodstream through the skin. These toxins damage cells in the skin, leading to an overall deterioration in complexion. Consider a pollutant, a smouldering cigarette butt lodged on your skin and emitting toxic chemicals.

When pollution enters your skin, it produces free radicals, volatile molecules with unpaired electrons. These molecules bounce around in your skin like Ping-Pong balls, trying to steal an electron from a healthy cell and injure it.

They pierce the collagen, which gives skin its firmness. This destruction manifests as hyperpigmentation, uneven skin tone and texture, and fine lines. Additionally, free radicals can aggravate acne and rosacea by increasing inflammation.

Which serums are recommended for uneven skin tone?

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