Part One of this hyperpigmentation feature touched on why it occurs and how to treat it. In this post I share my personal recommendations on products that have made a visible difference in fading my dark marks.
As a Black woman who has struggled with hyperpigmentation for longer than I care to remember, I have never wanted to have lighter skin, instead I want to maintain the integrity of my skin while treating it.
So, rest assured that the products recommended here do just that. It incorporates brightening, skin refining products with tyrosinase inhibiting ingredients and treatments. From serums to exfoliators and treatments - all designed to prevent, treat, and fade the marks but not lighten you beyond your natural skin tone.
As with all good skincare habits particularly when it comes to darker skin - a slow and steady approach wins the hyperpigmentation race. I have included products you can buy through retailers and others that you can purchase through clinics. Obviously due to Lockdown you can access all the products online.
Products You Can Purchase Via Retailers
When it comes to making true changes to your skin, vitamin A is one of the most highly recommended skincare ingredients by dermatologists for its effectiveness and efficacy.
An amazing all rounder with numerous benefits, ranging from enhancing the rate at which your skin cells turnover for a much smoother surface, decreasing melanin production for a more even skin tone, to encouraging collagen production.
I am loving Medik8’s Crystal Retinal 3 which uses vitamin A in the form of Retinaldehyde (Retinal for short), and which promises to deliver results faster than retinol, minus the irritation. A few weeks into using it, the texture of my skin is smoother, my skin has a radiant glow and the large pores on my cheeks appear much smaller and clarified.
I've been a long time fan of vitamin C for both its antioxidant and skin revitalisation benefits. I had resisted trying SkinCeuticals C E Ferulic for a long time, largely because of the price point. Having now tried it, I have to agree that it completely deserves its cult skincare status. I started seeing a noticeable difference within the first two weeks as my skin became visibly brighter, with an underlying glow that keeps getting better with use.
Packed with 15% vitamin C (L-Ascorbic Acid) as well as vitamin E and Ferulic Acid, it delivers proven antioxidants and stimulates skin collagen production. The formulation absorbs well, isn't sticky and doesn't sting. Plus the results are even better. So yes my wallet isn't happy but my face is ecstatic and glowing.
Ultrasun Tinted Anti-Pigmentation SPF50+
Here is the truth, when treating hyperpigmentation, the importance of protecting your skin with a high level SPF cannot be stressed highly enough. This applies whether you are treating dark marks or trying to prevent new ones from occurring. There is a misconception that black skin doesn’t need SPF, but in reality exposing your skin to the sun without protection is a remedy for sabotaging all your hard work.
My current SPF of choice is Ultrasun’s Tinted Anti-Pigmentation SPF50+. Offering a broad-spectrum high level SPF protection, that filters UVA, UVB and Infrared-A rays to reduce their damaging effects on the skin. Combined with targeted skincare actives in the form of Ectoin, a revolutionary rare enzyme that protects the skin from UVA damage as well as stabilised vitamin C and antioxidants to further shield from environmental damage.
It absorbs well, the tint gives my skin a natural warm radiance and it doesn’t leave me with a white cast. It also helps to fade existing pigmentation and protect against any new dark spots.
Products You Can Purchase Via The Clinic
bea Skincare Brightening Serum
Created by Bianca Estelle, an award winning skin specialist and the founder of bea Skin Clinic. Her skincare line has been carefully formulated to cater to the skin concerns of darker skin, which being a black woman herself is extremely important to her.
Her Brightening Serum is a hardworking powerhouse cocktail of active ingredients with 12% alpha arbutin, 10% kojic acid and vitamin C to suppress the excessive melanin and fade the marks combined with exfoliators 10% mandelic acid, 10% lactic acid, and retinyl palmitate. They all help target uneven pigmentation, brighten the skin and smooth out the texture. Over time I found it evened out my skin tone and gave me that luminous lit from within look with no extra layering required.
An exciting new intensive pigment corrector in the hyperpigmentation treatment space. Cyspera powerfully works to address the appearance of discolorations.
Its star ingredient is Cysteamine. An antioxidant found naturally in the body and a real game-changer given that it doesn’t cause any photosensitivity and can be used consistently.
It works as a treatment, that you apply daily for 15 minutes for an initial 16 week intensive phase. After using it for 14 weeks, I noticed about a 60% reduction in my dark marks from a previous breakout. My overall skin tone however is much more even and uniform, and the results continue to get better with regular use.
P50 by Biologique Recherche is one of my holy grail products that I am never without. It packs a punch with a potent blend of AHA, BHA and PHA exfoliants: namely lactic acid, malic acid, citric acid, salicylic acid, and gluconolactone. It not only exfoliates, but it also purifies, regenerates and balances out the PH of your skin with one swipe to give you that glow. I use it 2-3 times a week for brighter, smoother skin.
