The key to treating melasma or dark pigmented skin spots is perseverance. There are many skin care products out there reporting to rid us of these unsightly marks and all have there merits, but of these some are more effective than others. I have investigated many different products over the years resulting in a skin care regime of which I am experiencing great success, so much so that I have to share.
Step 1. visit your GP or Dermatologist, dermo is better because they can look at your skin under a woods lamp and officially diagnose your skin condition, with this he can tell you how deep the pigment is. The deeper it is the longer it will take to treat but it can be treated! Get a prescription for trenitoin (retin A) cream or gel, also one for Hydroquinone over 3% compounded with kojic acid. Use the trenitoin at night after cleansing, over your whole face (not just the spots) sparingly, more is less. Don't use moisturizer over the top. In the morning after cleansing apply the hydroquinone cream, only to your dark spots. This is like a bleach, it actually stops the skin from producing more melanin, but you only want this where you need it. Apply sparingly as well as it can be quite greasy. After the hydroquinone has soaked in apply a sunscreen/moisturiser at least 30+, this is most important as the trenitoin thins your skin making it susceptible to the sun and the sun will make your pigment issues worse. You can then apply your make up and go about your day.
Budget Buster: http://www.alldaychemist.com/ These guys stock trenitoin and hydroquinone creams at less than half pharmacy prices and no script in necessary. I have made several purchases with them and everything arrives promptly and in good order. Shipping can be expensive so buy in bulk.
After a week or more of following this skin care regime you should be experiencing some skin peeling, maybe some redness even the odd pimple or two, don't panic!! The trenitoin is a vitamin a derived lotion and causes your skin to turn over at a higher rate than normal, this is great for treating aging skin as well as pigmentation, thus why we put it on the entire face, may as well reap the benefits from both. If you find your skin is to sensitive what with peeling and redness, then try using the trenitoin every second night, but don't give up on it. Also avoid harsh cleansers and facial scrubs while the skin is sensitive.
Step 2: Book a skin peel. Most beauticians can recommend a skin peel that will assist with removing pigmentation. In addition to the trenitoin treatment your skin will react very well to peeling. Your dermatologist could recommend which peel is best for your skin type as well, some even offer this service.
A word of caution, often deeper peels can cause more pigmentation, especially if you have darker skin. So chemical peels may not be recommended for darker skin, (such as my own). After your peel your skin may be quite red and stinging, there may even be areas where the skin has been removed. While your skin is tender, for the next few days it is best to cleanse with just water or a very gentle cleanser. I prefer to use an aloe based gel to keep my face moisturised and to prevent scabbing. Tho scabbing will still occur over the next few days, and this will in turn itch. Gently massaging your moisturiser into your skin (or bio oil) will relieve the itching and help to exfoliate away loose scabs. A mask of honey (just normal kitchen honey) is also relieving and assists in the healing process. Do not pick!!! While your skin is healing do not use your trenitoin cream, instead you can use your hydroquinone morning and night until healed.
Step 3. Vitamin supplementation: You are what you eat apparently, and there are many supplements reputed to assist in ridding us of melasma. I can neither dismiss nor approve these claims so supplement I do. A list of these and there uses are here.
MSM- Methylsufonylmethane: 3000mg a day is supposed to rid the body of excess copper
Vitamin c- lowers copper levels
Zinc- lowers copper levels
Coq10- helps cell turn over
Multivitamin- why not I'm already taking everything else!
Pro biotic- stops excess estrogen production in the gut.
Copper in excess in the body is thought to be a contributing factor to Melasma, thus why we supplement against it. Estrogen (hormones) is another cause so we eliminate any that we don't need. Most of these are available at the local pharmacy, I found MSM more difficult to obtain so I ordered a bag in a powder form and some empty capsules and made my own, it has been much more economical though a little time consuming. http://www.msmaustralia.com.au/ this is the local supplier I used. Also I have found MSM useful for treating my arthritis and can easily be made into a cream as well. Some web sites even sell it in eye drops to lighten eye colour.
Step 4: when your skin has recovered from your peel and is no longer sensitive, have a good look at it. You may still have some areas that are a little pink if you scabbed up allot or not. You may even have some areas where your pigment has disappeared, (yay). You can now return to using your trenitoin at night and Hydroquinone in the morning for the remaining dark areas. It was at this stage that I changed my cleansing routine.
Morning: wipe my face over with a facial cleansing wipe, then rinse with water.
Tone with apple cider vinegar, apply hyaluronic acid serum (for wrinkles), allow to sink in,
apply Hydroquinone to spots, allow to sink in. Then 30+ moisturiser and finally make up.
In the evening: remove make up with facial cleansing wipe, massage face with dermalogica precleanse oil.
Wash face with water then cleanse with a gentle vitamin e wash. Tone with apple cider vinegar. Apply serum then trenitoin.
So far so good, this has really worked for me and I know it will for you too. At this stage I am up to my third peel, at a rate of one every month or so and my skin has never been this good. Not just my melasma but the general condition of my skin has improved. I finally look younger a opposed to older :)
Another recommendation is IPL, I have had many professional sessions of ipl and I believe it comparable to a face peel, but the expense is most off putting. Recently I purchased my own IPL machine, it is not the huge thing they use at the salon but rather a small personal model. The unit I purchased comes with the option of hair removal settings and skin rejuvenation settings (all at the change of a bulb). Having darker skin I have been quite cautious in it's use so far for skin rejuvenation. The hair removal option is wonderful and I have put it through it's paces but I am being a little more careful with my face as I don't wish to go back wards at this stage. http://vissbeauty.com/ here is the site I purchased mine from. It only took 5 days to arrive which is amazing for international post I thought, especially since shipping was free.
Good luck and stay tuned as I have a swag of products I have trialed and will be trialing not only for melasma but general skin care as well, that I want you to hear about.
Monday, March 26, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
melasma, chloasma, pigment be gone!!
I have suffered from odd spots of facial pigmentation since puberty, wise and knowing doctors would call this hormonal. If I picked a pimple the resulting scab would leave a dark mark which would eventually fade over time. During each of my three pregnancies I suffered from Chloasma (mask of pregnancy), this would fade a little between pregnancies but came back worse each time. After my last pregnancy it didn't go away. Having a rather mixed heritage my skin is a dark olive colour but the blotches are three to four times darker than my skin colour. The blotches are located on my forehead, from the middle to my hair line, on my cheeks from mid cheek running down to and on my neck and on my chin across the bottom.
I visited a dermatologist who aided with a woods lamp diagnosed me with Melasma, he said I actually had two types of Melasma dermal and epidermal. The outlook was not good, dermal melasma is very deeply ingrained in the skin and is very hard to treat, epidermal is in the more upper layers of skin and can react better to topical type treatment. The next negative being I have dark skin, meaning if I start removing melanin (the chemical which makes skin colour) from one area I may not be able to match it with the other areas. Either way it was not going to be a quick fix, treatment would be long and expensive with no guarantee of success.
This was several years ago, I have learnt that the sun plays a major role in darkening Melasma, so I always wear sunscreen. I even blend my own mineral make up with added zinc for extra protection and better coverage. I have seen some fading but not much so I have decided to finally do something about it.
The Dr has prescribed for me some Retin A cream, which I use at night, (sparingly). This thins my skin allowing better absorption of the other treatments, plus helps to turn over dead skin, (peeling) which is also beneficial.
The next prescription was for a specially compounded mix of Hydroqinone 4% and Kojic acid cream, both of these substances, stop the skin from making more melanin and in effect bleach the area to which they are applied. I use this during the day under my sunscreen and makeup, careful not to use much as it is quite oily, and making sure I only apply it to the problem areas. I saw some improvement using this regime religiously day and night for three months but very little, so I took it up a notch.
Visiting a cosmetic beautician she suggested ipl (intense pulsed light) treatments for my entire face. This was very expensive and also slow going, as care was needed since the light reacts to dark melanin and my skin is also quite dark. After treatment, where my face is zapped about 20 to 30 times with what feels like a hot elastic band, my face feels very warm and goes quite red, the day after treatment I develop brown scabs, these gradually, disappear or flake away after several days.
It is not a dramatic difference after the first or even second treatment but with each treatment the beautician gingerly sets the machine a little higher. After my third treatment my entire forehead scabbed in the exact pattern of my melasma and after several days it flaked away resulting in clear fresh skin. I was so excited but by the end of the month as my next appointment loomed it had all reappeared just as dark as before. I under went a final ipl session before my budget finally gave in. So ipl is , plausible but way to expensive.
My beautician then suggested skin peels using Kojic acid in the hope that we could remove some of the discolouration this way. After revisiting the dermatologist he suggested I try this (carefully) but to still continue to use my retin a and bleaching cream for added results, as I had stopped using these for ipl. My first peel was nothing to rave about, felt like ants biting my face for the first 5 Minuit's then 5 Minuit's later it was cleaned away, over the next week my skin became quite flaky and peeled like sunburn and tho it felt wonderful my face still looked the same. The next peel was done a month later, and it felt hot, hot, hot my eyes actually watered, when it was being removed my skin was so tender it felt like it was being stripped away. The beautician felt this reaction had something to do with the retin a cream, and watched me leave very nervously.
For the next two days I didn't leave the house as I was one big scab, I kept a cooling moisturizing gel over my face only washing with water. On the third day it became quite itchy and started to flake even with the gel. After a week all of the scabs had washed away leaving my skin quite pink in areas, but feeling soft like a babies bottom. Most of my melasma was still present but it had faded and some areas are patchier. After the pinkness had subsided I started back with my retin a and hydroquinone. So far so good!
My most recent acquisition is a Viss personal IPL machine, this machine has separate attachments (globes) for hair removal and skin rejuvenation. I have used it several times (on very low setting) on my face using the skin rejuvenation globe, I shall continue in this manner 3 or 4 times a week for a month and see if it makes a difference to my melsama at all. I will continue to use my retin a and hydroquinone creams as well as taking some additional dietary suppliments I have heard help get rid of pigmentation. These are MSM (methylsulfonyl methane) aceytl lcarnitine, vitamen c, zinc, folic acid and coq10.
Watch this space for up dates on my treatment and if you would like to know anything more about any of the treatments mentioned please don't be shy.
I visited a dermatologist who aided with a woods lamp diagnosed me with Melasma, he said I actually had two types of Melasma dermal and epidermal. The outlook was not good, dermal melasma is very deeply ingrained in the skin and is very hard to treat, epidermal is in the more upper layers of skin and can react better to topical type treatment. The next negative being I have dark skin, meaning if I start removing melanin (the chemical which makes skin colour) from one area I may not be able to match it with the other areas. Either way it was not going to be a quick fix, treatment would be long and expensive with no guarantee of success.
This was several years ago, I have learnt that the sun plays a major role in darkening Melasma, so I always wear sunscreen. I even blend my own mineral make up with added zinc for extra protection and better coverage. I have seen some fading but not much so I have decided to finally do something about it.
The Dr has prescribed for me some Retin A cream, which I use at night, (sparingly). This thins my skin allowing better absorption of the other treatments, plus helps to turn over dead skin, (peeling) which is also beneficial.
The next prescription was for a specially compounded mix of Hydroqinone 4% and Kojic acid cream, both of these substances, stop the skin from making more melanin and in effect bleach the area to which they are applied. I use this during the day under my sunscreen and makeup, careful not to use much as it is quite oily, and making sure I only apply it to the problem areas. I saw some improvement using this regime religiously day and night for three months but very little, so I took it up a notch.
Visiting a cosmetic beautician she suggested ipl (intense pulsed light) treatments for my entire face. This was very expensive and also slow going, as care was needed since the light reacts to dark melanin and my skin is also quite dark. After treatment, where my face is zapped about 20 to 30 times with what feels like a hot elastic band, my face feels very warm and goes quite red, the day after treatment I develop brown scabs, these gradually, disappear or flake away after several days.
It is not a dramatic difference after the first or even second treatment but with each treatment the beautician gingerly sets the machine a little higher. After my third treatment my entire forehead scabbed in the exact pattern of my melasma and after several days it flaked away resulting in clear fresh skin. I was so excited but by the end of the month as my next appointment loomed it had all reappeared just as dark as before. I under went a final ipl session before my budget finally gave in. So ipl is , plausible but way to expensive.
My beautician then suggested skin peels using Kojic acid in the hope that we could remove some of the discolouration this way. After revisiting the dermatologist he suggested I try this (carefully) but to still continue to use my retin a and bleaching cream for added results, as I had stopped using these for ipl. My first peel was nothing to rave about, felt like ants biting my face for the first 5 Minuit's then 5 Minuit's later it was cleaned away, over the next week my skin became quite flaky and peeled like sunburn and tho it felt wonderful my face still looked the same. The next peel was done a month later, and it felt hot, hot, hot my eyes actually watered, when it was being removed my skin was so tender it felt like it was being stripped away. The beautician felt this reaction had something to do with the retin a cream, and watched me leave very nervously.
For the next two days I didn't leave the house as I was one big scab, I kept a cooling moisturizing gel over my face only washing with water. On the third day it became quite itchy and started to flake even with the gel. After a week all of the scabs had washed away leaving my skin quite pink in areas, but feeling soft like a babies bottom. Most of my melasma was still present but it had faded and some areas are patchier. After the pinkness had subsided I started back with my retin a and hydroquinone. So far so good!
My most recent acquisition is a Viss personal IPL machine, this machine has separate attachments (globes) for hair removal and skin rejuvenation. I have used it several times (on very low setting) on my face using the skin rejuvenation globe, I shall continue in this manner 3 or 4 times a week for a month and see if it makes a difference to my melsama at all. I will continue to use my retin a and hydroquinone creams as well as taking some additional dietary suppliments I have heard help get rid of pigmentation. These are MSM (methylsulfonyl methane) aceytl lcarnitine, vitamen c, zinc, folic acid and coq10.
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