A woman blended an entire homegrown aloe vera plant—skin, flesh, and all—into a smooth paste and slathered it on her face. Within an hour, her skin turned red, swollen, and unbearably itchy. The problem was aloin, a harsh compound lurking in the aloe’s skin that she didn’t know needed to be removed.
Another woman pressed lemon slices onto her face and went out the next morning without rinsing. By afternoon, dark, patchy pigmentation emerged where the lemon juice met sunlight. The culprit? Photosensitive compounds in citrus peels had triggered a condition called phytophotodermatitis.
Taiwanese dermatologist Chen Yan-da shared these examples on “Health 1+1,” a program on NTDTV, a sister outlet of The Epoch Times, highlighting a common problem: Many people want brighter skin but don’t understand how to achieve it safely.
Why Skin Darkens
Many people assume only sunlight causes skin darkening, but melanin—the pigment responsible for skin color—can be stimulated by several other factors.
1. Light Exposure (Including Indoor Sources)
Beyond ultraviolet (UV) rays, visible light can also trigger melanin production, leading to darker skin or pigmentation spots. Traditional incandescent bulbs and modern fluorescent lights emit some UV rays and high-intensity visible light. Similarly, digital screens from computers, TVs, and smartphones emit significant amounts of blue and visible light. Prolonged exposure to these light sources can cause the skin to darken subtly over time, even when you’re indoors.
2. Poor Sleep and Chronic Stress
Insufficient sleep and chronic stress can put the skin in a state of “chronic inflammation,” which continuously stimulates melanin-producing cells.
Sleep deprivation also causes the skin to appear yellowish, likely due to inflammation. A 2023 study examined a group of Chinese women who either stayed awake for an entire night or slept only four hours per night for five consecutive days. Using professional imaging equipment, researchers found that both scenarios led to noticeably yellower skin. Even after three days of restored normal sleep, the yellowish tint remained.
3. Hormonal Shifts
For women, hormonal fluctuations are another major cause of pigmentation, particularly during three specific circumstances:
- Pregnancy: Rising estrogen and progesterone levels can trigger melasma.
- Menopause: A drop in these hormones can also lead to uneven skin tone.
- Birth Control Pills: Since they alter hormone levels, they can sometimes increase pigmentation risk in susceptible people.
Other Factors That Influence Skin Color
While melanin is the primary factor, several other elements influence how your skin looks:
- Blood Flow: The network of capillaries beneath the skin affects color. Oxygenated hemoglobin appears red, while deoxygenated hemoglobin takes on a bluish hue.
- Diet: Excessive consumption of foods rich in beta-carotene and lycopene, such as carrots, sweet potatoes, and tomatoes, can cause the skin to appear yellowish.
- Stratum Corneum: This outermost layer of skin affects how light reflects off your face. When it’s healthy, well-organized, and adequately hydrated, light refracts evenly, giving the skin a bright, radiant glow. When it’s thick, dry, or disordered, skin looks dull.
How Do Skin-Lightening Products Work?
After understanding the causes of melanin production, the next step is to choose the right skin care method. Chen explains that most skin-brightening products on the market essentially use three main approaches to fade melanin:
1. Reduce Melanin Synthesis
Want to stop dark spots before they form? These ingredients work deep within the skin to slow melanin production at its source.
- Skin Care Ingredients: Tranexamic acid, kojic acid, azelaic acid, arbutin, glabridin, ellagic acid, ferulic acid, retinol (vitamin A), and vitamin C derivatives
- Prescription Ingredients: Hydroquinone and tretinoin (retinoic acid)
- Other Uncommon Ingredients: Lignin peroxidase and hydroxyl phenoxypropionic acid
2. Reduce Melanin Transfer to Surrounding Cells
Even if your skin makes melanin, it doesn’t have to show. Certain ingredients can block that pigment from reaching the surface, keeping your complexion more even.
- Skin Care Ingredients: Retinol and niacinamide
- Prescription Ingredients: Tretinoin
3. Accelerate the Shedding of Skin Cells Containing Melanin
Old, pigment-filled cells can make skin look dull. Gentle exfoliating ingredients help your skin shed them faster, revealing a fresher, brighter glow underneath.
- Skin Care Ingredients: Retinol, glycolic acid, and salicylic acid
- Prescription Ingredients: Tretinoin
How to Pick Starter Skin-Lightening Products
With the wide variety of brightening products available, how do you find the right one for you? From a dermatologist’s perspective, Chen recommends starting with single-ingredient products to ensure your skin tolerates them before moving to multi-ingredient formulas.
Single-ingredient brightening products contain only one primary active ingredient, such as L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C), which is effective enough on its own. Many products on the market combine ingredients like L-ascorbic acid, arbutin, and tranexamic acid to enhance results, but this also increases the risk of irritation. If your skin reacts badly, it’s often difficult to pinpoint which ingredient caused the problem.
Pay close attention to ingredient concentrations. For instance, in Taiwan, tranexamic acid is capped at a maximum concentration of 3 percent, while the European Union and the United States impose no such limit. However, even a 3 percent concentration may irritate sensitive skin. As a guiding principle, “no sensation is the best sensation,” Chen says—opt for products that feel comfortable on your skin.
Chen warns that if you experience stinging, pain, itching, or redness—key warning signs—stop using the product immediately. Stinging or itching is a form of pain, signaling that the ingredient may be harming your skin.
To minimize irritation, try diluting the product by mixing it with a moisturizing lotion in a 1-to-1 ratio. After your skin has recovered, retest the diluted product. Gradually return to the original concentration only when your skin is ready.
‘Early C, Late A’: A Safe Skin-Care Routine
Besides choosing the right ingredients, the timing and method of use matter too.
The popular skin care formula “vitamin C in the morning, vitamin A at night” or “early C, late A,” means using products containing vitamin C during the daytime and products with vitamin A derivatives at night. Chen notes that the vitamin C derivative, L-ascorbic acid, is a powerful antioxidant that can help prevent sunburn and tanning when used in the morning.
Using vitamin A derivatives like retinol and tretinoin during the day increases the risk of sunburn, so it is recommended to apply them at night and thoroughly wash them off the next morning.
For mild pigmentation or dullness, over-the-counter products are often enough. Consult a dermatologist if you:
- Have stubborn melasma, age spots, or uneven tone unresponsive to over-the-counter care.
- Develop irritation or worsening pigmentation.
- Are considering oral medications or aesthetic procedures.
Medical Aesthetic Solutions for Stubborn Skin Issues
When skin care products fall short in treating uneven skin tone or pigmentation issues, medical aesthetic treatments provide a more advanced solution. Chen breaks down the most common concerns:
Melasma
Gentle combination therapy works best—oral or topical whitening agents, light peels, or low-energy picosecond lasers. Strong lasers can worsen melasma.
Caution: Tranexamic acid is sometimes prescribed orally, but it isn’t suitable for patients with heart or blood-clotting problems, or those taking hormonal therapy that increases clotting risk. Please consult a dermatologist before use.
Sunspots and Age Spots
Treatment lasers are recommended for addressing these issues. After the procedure, there will be a recovery period during which scabbing or minor wounds may occur, so proper aftercare is crucial.
The cost depends on the treatment area and the number of spots. It’s advisable not to wait until your face is covered with spots before seeking treatment. Treating a few spots early is more cost-effective and involves easier recovery.
Brightening Dull Skin
For mildly dull or lackluster skin, expensive treatments like picosecond lasers aren’t always needed. Maintenance lasers, combined with oral or topical brightening products or IV drips containing vitamins and antioxidants, often achieve better overall results.
Water glow injections—skin booster treatments that deliver hyaluronic acid, tranexamic acid, and vitamin C into the skin’s surface—can further enhance hydration and radiance, leaving the complexion smoother and more luminous.
Post-Incident Skin Concerns
For excessive UV exposure triggering overactive melanin production, Chen recommends promptly starting oral skin-lightening medications alongside IV drips.
IV drips provide superior absorption, rapidly delivering active ingredients throughout the body, making them highly effective for stabilizing skin tone after acute sun damage. Combining these with oral medications enhances the outcome, creating a synergistic effect that surpasses the benefits of either treatment alone.
Full-Body Whitening
Topical methods are impractical for large areas. Oral medications or IV drips can distribute active ingredients systemically. Safety should be discussed with a qualified physician before treatment.
Topical products usually take four to eight weeks to show results, whereas aesthetic treatments can produce visible improvements after one to three sessions, though continued care is needed for lasting results.
How Light Can Your Skin Actually Get?
Many people wonder, “How light can my skin become?” Chen clarifies that skin brightening is limited by your genetics. No product or treatment can endlessly lighten your skin beyond its natural baseline.
Instead, whitening products and procedures work to regulate overactive melanin-producing cells, often triggered by environmental factors—restoring your skin to its healthy, stable baseline. “This process is about regulation, not bleaching,” he said.
Curious about how radiant your skin can become? Chen shares a simple method: Look at your abdomen. As the least sun-exposed area of your body, your belly reveals the lightest skin tone you can achieve with dedication.
To unlock and maintain that glowing potential, consistent sun protection is essential.
Chen recalls a case of a woman in her 60s, a farmer seeking treatment for pigmentation spots. When asked about her sun exposure, she admitted, “I’m in the sun for hours every day.” Chen cautioned against spot-removal treatments, noting, “Without sun protection, results fade quickly, and there’s a higher risk of worsening hyperpigmentation.” He emphasizes that without shielding your skin from the sun, even the most advanced aesthetic treatments lose their effectiveness.
