Uneven Skin Type

An uneven skin tone on the face and dark spots on the skin can be caused by many skin conditions such as melasma and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. 

Sun exposure, blue light from the phone and computer, and exposure to heat can cause an uneven skin tone on the face and cheeks. 

While fine lines and wrinkles suggest increased age, an uneven skin tone on the face suggests health problems as shown by several studies. Obviously, you do not want to look unhealthy- so let's discuss how to even the skin tone and erase hyperpigmentation. 

 (If you have dark spots on the face and have black skin, click here.)

First, we will discuss the best products to even skin tone and then we will discuss causes of uneven skin tone on the face.

Before we discuss the best products to treat an uneven skin tone on the face- you first need to decide- is the problem the light spots on the skin or the dark spots on the skin? If you have an uneven skin tone on the face- you have two options:

• Darken the light spots on the skin
• Lighten the darker spots on the skin

If you have light spots that cause an uneven skin tone, the first step is to find out the cause of the light spots on the skin. Light spots on the skin can be caused by vitiligo, yeast or fungus, sun damage or an inflammatory skin disorder like eczema. The best way to darken light spots on the skin is with makeup cover products such as foundations and concealers. It is not always easy to get the correct skin color match, but luckily brands like Dermablend have many options to cover dark spots and light spots on the skin.

Dark spots on the skin are very troublesome and different to erase. You need a skin care routine with products that are chosen to treat hyperpigmentation.  

The skin care products that are best to treat an uneven skin tone are skin brighteners and lighteners.

If you want to know what skin care routine is best to even your skin tone, take our skin care routine quiz and we will guide you with a custom personalized skin care regimen.

Skincare products to even the skin tone by lighting dark spots work by decreasing the levels of melanin pigment in the skin. When treating uneven skin tone, you need to prevent activation of the melanocyte- the cell that makes melanin- or your uneven skin tone will come back. Treating uneven skin tone can be discouraging for two main reasons:

The uneven skin tone can take 8-16 weeks to go away when using uneven skin tone products. If it does not get better in 16 weeks read this blog on what to do. 

Uneven skin tone recurs with inflammation, blue light, heat and sun exposure, Wearing a tinted SPF all day -even indoors- can help protect your skin from the light from your phone and computer.

If you want to treat your uneven skin tone and lighten dark spots on the skin, you need the correct skincare routine for your skin type and you must use it very consistently twice a day for 8-16 weeks. That can be 4 months! But lightening your skin with skin care products is the safest way to treat dark spots on the skin. If you do laser, lights, microneedling and other procedures to even skin tone, you can actually make the uneven skin tone worse. You also need to avoid the sun, wear daily sunscreen, avoid heat, and stop any estrogen products you are taking that can increase skin pigmentation. You also need to reduce inflammation because inflammation causes the pigment-producing cells (Melanocytes) to make more pigment (melanin).

There are many types of skincare products to lighten dark spots on the skin and even skin tone. 

They can be divided into categories:

• Tyrosinase inhibitors
• PAR-2 Blockers
• Exfoliants
• Moisturizers
• Tinted Sunscreens
• Oral supplements

Click the category to learn about each product type.

Skin color and skin tone depend upon underlying levels of the skin pigments eumelanin and pheomelanin and the presence of a component in the blood known as hemoglobin and hemosiderin.

An uneven skin tone occurs when melanin is not equally dispersed throughout the skin. Eumelanin is usually the pigment that causes an uneven skin tone but hemoglobin and pheomelanin play a role in skin tone.

There are many skin conditions that cause uneven skin tone. 

Here is a list of a few causes of uneven skin tone which is known as dyschromia or hyperpigmentation:

• Inflammation
• Mask of Pregnancy
• Melasma
• PIPA, PIH
• Phytophotodermatitis (sun sensitivity)
• Skin Allergy
• Sun Spots (solar lentigos)

There are 8 Baumann Skin Types that have an uneven skin tone.

These skin types with an uneven skin tone are called Pigmented Baumann Skin Types because these skin types need ingredients to regulate skin pigmentation and even skin tone. A Pigmented Baumann Skin Type means there is uneven skin tone. It is based on evenness or unevenness of skin tone- not on overall skin color. In other words- the definition of Pigmented Baumann Skin Types is not based on ethnicity or Fitzpatrick Skin Type, but rather is based on the presence of an uneven skin tone and the need for uneven skin tone face products.

1. Baumann L. Uneven Skin Tone in Ch. 14 of Baumann's Cosmetic Dermatology Ed 3. (McGraw Hill 2022)
2. Baumann, L. Chapter 32-45 Cosmeceuticals and Cosmetic Ingredients (McGraw Hill 2015)
3. Vashi, N. A., Maymone, M. B. D. C., & Kundu, R. V. (2016). Aging differences in ethnic skin. The Journal of clinical and aesthetic dermatology, 9(1), 31.
4. Kang, H. Y., Lee, J. W., Papaccio, F., Bellei, B., & Picardo, M. (2021). Alterations of the pigmentation system in the aging process. Pigment cell & melanoma research, 34(4), 800-813.
5. Baumann, L., Rodriguez, D., Taylor, S. C., & Wu, J. (2006). Natural considerations for skin of color. Cutis, 78(6 Suppl), 2-19.
6. Baumann, L. (2008). Understanding and treating various skin types: the Baumann Skin Type Indicator. Dermatologic clinics, 26(3), 359-373.
7. Baumann, L. (2016). Cosmeceuticals in skin of color. , 35, 4, 35(4), 233-237.