Thread by @topicals, Hey y’all! It's Claudia, Co-founder at Topicals. Before Topicals, I worked in [...]

Hey y’all! It's Claudia, Co-founder at Topicals. Before Topicals, I worked in clinical research at Stanford’s Department of Dermatology. I’ve also lived with severe eczema my entire life. Let's get into why skin of color gets hyperpigmentation so easily and how to manage it

This week, I worked with our go-to derm who also helps us formulate our products, Dr. Joyce Teng to see why skin of color sees so much hyperpigmentation. She's the chief pediatric dermatologist at Stanford University and sees a lottt of it!

So what is hyperpigmentation? It can look like little dark marks, diffuse discoloration, or darker patchy areas. There are different types of hyp., but 2 that POC and more specifically WOC are more prone to are post-inflammatory hyp. (PIH) & melasma. What kind(s) do you have?

Let's break these down a little more:
PIH - appears after trauma/inflammation. This includes bug bites, cuts, burns, and inflammatory skin conditions like eczema, psoriasis, acne, rosacea, KP (chicken skin), razor bumps (also strawberry legs). What causes your PIH?

Melasma - occurs in women because of changes in hormone levels (estrogen and progesterone), often triggered by sun exposure. Looks like larger, more spread out dark patches and is most often found on your face. It often looks like a mask or a mustache/beard.

Let's get into the why: hyp. is caused by excess melanin which is made by cells called melanocytes. Everyone actually has about the same # of melanocytes, but POC's are more active. They produce larger packets of melanin and more of them. AKA they're out here

working

BTW, just to make sure we're all on the same page, this is a blessing! Melanin (more specifically eumelanin which is what makes skin of color brown/black) is photoprotective, meaning it helps to prevent skin cell damage due to the sun. She's got your back

Understanding melanin production as skin's defense mechanism helps explain why POC are more prone to hyp. Bc your melanocytes are already more defensive/active, they more readily produce excess melanin in response to trauma/inflammation. Melanocytes responding to inflammation:

Also, since melanocytes in POC produce larger packets of melanin and more eumelanin (brown/black pigment) than pheomelanin (red/yellow pigment), it appears more visible on skin. Because of melanin distribution in the layers of skin in skin of color, it tends to last longer too.

What does this mean?
1. POC neeeed to wear sunscreen. Lots of hyp. is triggered/made worse by the sun. Even though you might not burn, your melanocytes respond more strongly to UV rays, meaning more hyp and oxidative damage to your skin. This can affect skin tone & skin texture!

2. Do what you can to reduce inflammation/trauma to the skin. Be extra gentle when exfoliating! Take care to use products that soothe and calm skin. Try to strengthen your skin's barrier and better protect from hyp. by introducing more moisturizer, protectants, and emollients.

Soothing ingredients: turmeric, honey, green tea extract, centella asiatica, licorice root, colloidal oatmeal, niacinamide, ginseng
Skin barrier ing.: ceramides, fatty acids, amino acids, shea butter, plant oils like squalane

*find many of these in our Like Butter mask

3. Be patient and give your skin (& yourself) grace, esp when treating your hyp. She takes a little longer to excuse herself and thats okay! When treating, stay away from hydroquinone (linked to ochronosis aka death of melanocytes in WOC). And try some of these out instead:

- kojic acid
- niacinamide
- azelaic acid
- tranexamic acid
- centella asiatica
- alpha-arbutin
-mandelic acid
-BHAs/AHAs
- retinols

*find many of these in our Faded serum

& speaking of hydroquinone, let me finish w/ this:
It's been difficult for POC to find things that work for them bc POC are rarely included in clinical trials! One study found that between 2010-2015, 75% of trial patients were white. Those are recent trials, imagine older ones!

That's how ingredients like hydroquinone, considered the gold standard of hyp. treatment but which disproportionately causes ochronosis (shown below) in WOC, slips through the cracks in skincare and dermatology.

POC are more likely to face barriers in accessing comprehensive healthcare and to have their skin misunderstood. One survey found that 47% of derms felt their medical training didn’t prepare them to treat Black skin. Have you ever felt like estis/derms haven't understood you?

To summarize: Authorities in healthcare & skincare need to do better

Representation, inclusion & acknowledgement of POC experiences matters!
Feeling frustrated as a POC bc your experience with your skin doesn't seem to match up with what you see in media is valid!

Thanks for coming to our Ted Talk. Questions? Comments? Thoughts?

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