How to Safely Fade Pigmentation on Darker Skin Tones
One of the most common questions we hear is, “Can I use this if I have darker skin?”
If you're Fitzpatrick 4 through 6, and you've struggled with melasma, dark spots, or uneven tone, and you're afraid of making it worse, this episode is for you.
Today, we're talking about how to safely fade pigmentation on melanin-rich skin without irritation, without damage, and without wasting time on products that aren't made for you.
We're going to discuss pigmentation on darker skin types and what you can do to manage it without exacerbating the issue.
Right, because it's often more noticeable in general if you have a light Fitzpatrick skin type.
The Fitzpatrick scale goes from 1 to 6. Fitzpatrick 1, 2, and 3. Those are your lightest colors. Like me, I'm a Fitzpatrick 2. You're probably 2 or 3.
And then you've got like 4, 5, and 6. So, Fitzpatrick 4, that's where you're hitting the olive tones, such as those found in Middle Eastern, Hispanic, and Asian skin colorings.
And then it gets a little bit darker yet, Fitzpatrick 5. And then into Fitzpatrick 6, that's your darkest skin tone.
So when you're 4, 5, and 6, we consider those the darker skin tones. You have much more melanin in your skin, and you're actually quite prone to hyperpigmentation.
It's just not always as noticeable as someone with like really light skin with lots of dark spots all over, because you may have darker skin and maybe blend a little bit better.
But it's common. The more melanin you have, sun damage is excess. Just because you have darker skin, yeah, you're protected more from burning. But that doesn't stop you from getting sun damage.
It doesn't stop you from getting sun cancer or, like skin cancer. So you have to protect your skin just as much. And it's different because we have to be more careful with darker skin types.
Yes.
And often, they reach out to us and want to get started immediately, saying, 'I want to use the TCA 20 peel.'
And we're like, ‘No, no, no.’
Yes.
First, you need to establish a regimen. And so we try to get them on our regimen, which is an acid cleanser. Definitely a melanin inhibitor like a Fade Bright.
If you're using hydroquinone and have another alpha arbutin product, that's fine. I don't care what product you're using, just use one.
Yes.
Antioxidants play a crucial role in sun protection, helping to reduce sun damage. And also an SPF, a retinoid at night. We want you on those products.
The number one prepping, let's say, if you can only afford one for whatever reason.
Yes.
Fade Bright. This contains a melanin inhibitor. It also includes some retinoids. We require your assistance on this project for a minimum of four weeks.
Correct.
Right?
Because it will take you some time to get up to daily usage with that product.
Yes, and ours is strong.
Don't start and go boom, boom, boom every day.
No, no. And this is the right direction. You can use this one to two times per day. People do work up to using this twice a day.
For sure.
However, most people will start with two or three times per week.
Right.
And you're going to ease into that product alone.
Yes.
It could take you four weeks to get used to using this once a day. However, as you move forward, you can work twice a day, which is really beneficial for helping to slow down melanin production.
So let's say you do get some sun damage. You're in the sun, you've got your SPF on, you're doing everything you can, but you know, you can still get new damage. That will help prevent as much as possible.
However, the main reason we like it, besides that feature, is that it prepares the skin for something more substantial, such as a chemical peel, micro needling, or a dream peel, vitamin A peel, or anything similar, as we're reducing melanin production in the skin.
Therefore, when we perform a treatment that's likely to cause inflammation, we aim to prevent post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation.
Very true.
So we need you to use this. This is like... Lighter people, anybody, absolutely anybody can get PIH.
Let's say we want everybody to use this. But if you are, say, Fitzpatrick, four, or even three, or if you're Heritage, let's say you're a light color.
Perhaps you're a Fitzpatrick two, but you're Hispanic with a blend of something else. You may have lighter skin, but your Heritage is prone to getting hyperpigmentation. We want you on that to help prevent it.
Exactly.
Because we don't want you to move forward with a stronger treatment and then end up with more pigmentation. I mean, that's the opposite of our goal. So, yeah, focusing on lightening the damage you have right now and making your skin treatment-ready, so that you're not going to end up with more pigmentation.
And I would say another key thing to find out is that, even if you have lighter skin, such as Fitz one, two, or three. If you get a bug bite or a pimple, what color is the mark that's left behind, right? Is it pink or is it brown?
Right.
So if it's pink, you probably don't run as high a risk of getting PIH.
Very true.
But if those marks are brown on you, like even my kids, as light as I am.
Yes.
My kids are light, but we all have Italian Heritage.
Oh yeah.
They get brown marks.
Yes.
See, my son gets brown marks, and he will be left with terrible hyperpigmentation, even though he has very light skin.
Oh yeah.
Another key thing to look at is what color your skin marks up as.
I took a phone call this morning from a gentleman who has Fitzpatrick 5.
Okay.
He did a TCA 20 peel. And yesterday on his face, and woke up this morning, and his skin is darker brown today.
Sure.
He almost looks bruised, is how he describes it.
Yeah.
And I've heard that…
Purple.
Yeah, I've heard that description before. So I immediately asked him what his Fitzpatrick was, and he said five.
And then my spider senses started tingling, and I said, ‘Did you pre-treat with a melanin inhibitor?’
‘Oh no, I didn't have time for that.’
Okay. So then we don't know at this point. I mean, A, he used a peel that was too strong. So he should have started with TCA 13.
The second mistake is that he didn't pre-treat with a melanin inhibitor. As you mentioned, when that peel is applied, the skin of those melanin-rich types can go into shock, and it will purge the melanin to try to protect the skin. So it's too soon for us to know.
Way too soon. We have to wait until that skin is done.
And that's what I said. I said, You know what? It's too soon to tell if this is post-inflammatory pigmentation.
Or just dead, dry skin, cause that’s normal.
Just dead skin. So let's think positive. Let's get you on. We purchased some Fade Bright when he was on the phone. We bought some Emu oil and other items that will help keep him hydrated before the next peel.
But he wasn't even working on pigmentation to start. He was just doing some anti-aging things.
Just wanted to improve, yes.
So, you have to follow a few of our recommendations to really follow the Fade Bright recommendation to suppress melanin because you don't want to cause something.
You don't want to invite issues.
You don't want that.
I do want to stress, too. This is not a guarantee that you won't experience some or any PIH. It will significantly reduce the risk. Approximately 50% of the time, it reduces the risk of developing PIH.
And if you do get some, it will be far less than you would have gotten if you hadn't pre-treated. So I don't want to say like, this is a miracle.
However, this is going to happen, and you won't know. So, it's not like you're going to pre-treat half of your face and not the other. If you want to, go ahead. But if you do end up with PIH, it's going to be far, far worse in the area that was not pre-treated.
So I don't want to say like, ‘This is like a miracle, 100% prevention.’
Agreed.
However, a massive difference if you don't pre-treat.
And then I just recommend not picking or pulling at the skin.
No.
You don't want to try to get that skin to shed quicker to see if it's dark underneath. Leave it on as long as you can.
As long as you can. It'll come off when it's ready.
Yeah. When it's ready, it will come off. And if you happen to have some pigmentation issues, we can also address those. That's why he started by buying the Fade Bright today and the Emu Oil, as he plans to prepare appropriately for the next peel.
He's going to dilute the acid. All of the things. Very, very important to always read your peel manual.
Yes.
I asked him if he had read the first two chapters of the manual, and he said he had not.
No, he just wrote '14' in the directions.
Yes, yes, yes. So, but if…
And that means he also avoided half of the emails we sent to him. Because after you purchase a peel like that, we're sending you our information.
Make sure you're pre-treating. Make sure you're following a regimen. There are several ways we're trying to ensure that, even before you receive the peel, you realize there's a step one and you're bypassing it. Please don't do that.
However, we are all human and make mistakes.
Live and learn.
Live and learn. And you know, we'll stay in touch, and he'll contact me if he needs me soon; from there, we'll go from there. But we're always here to help if something does go astray.
Right.
But preventing it is key.
Preventing it is key.
Yeah, preventing it is key.
And you don't always have to start with something like that. For instance, let's say we're discussing hyperpigmentation today. He wasn't dealing with that. But there are acids. Now there are gentler acids, and there are also just everyday products.
So, I suppose I'd like to start with an everyday product. Like, let's just say you don't have to do a peel, right? You can use something along the lines of Fade Bright and Serum 15.
Yeah.
If you know, you can alternate these. This will provide you with gentle exfoliation.
A good choice.
And this is a melanin inhibitor.
If you want to make it a little more potent, I would recommend adding an antioxidant, as antioxidants help mitigate the damage caused by daily sun exposure.
Vitamin C is also known to be a lightning-brightening type of product. So this is good for pigmentation.
Yes.
You can use a similar method if you prefer not to do a peel.
And many darker skin tones are leery.
Yeah.
Because they know the risks.
Maybe they've lived and learned.
Yes, exactly. So they're a little bit more leery. And often, they will opt for this route with Daily First and simply condition their skin.
And often, they achieve the results they're looking for with just the daily product.
Oh, yeah. Or they're seeing good results, and then that leads them into the next step.
Yes.
Which might be a milder peel. For instance, if you don't want to see any flaking, you can handle a slight bit of dryness.
Sure.
I recommend the Lactic 50 Super Peel for hyperpigmentation.
Another wonderful one is the Mandelic. I generally say 40%.
Yeah.
This one may give you a hint of dryness. Some people get some flak with this one. Another gentle acid that you can use. So Lactic 50 or Mandelic 40 are super options.
Another great option is the Dream Peel.
Oh, yeah.
I recommend that everyone pre-treat for a Dream Peel.
However, this product contains a high percentage of retinoid and a high percentage of vitamin C. As we know, vitamin C is a lightening and brightening agent.
Right
The retinoid will help turn over the skin. And of course, you could go for a stronger peel. And then that's when I generally recommend Jessner.
And this is stronger because it's layerable, right? You get about three layers from each of these bottles, sometimes four.
I advise people to start with one layer, especially if they're concerned and unsure how their skin will react. You don't have to do two, three, or four layers your first time. You can work up to 10 layers of this, if you like.
But start with one layer. Ease into it. See how your skin responds to it. Make sure you're not getting any PIH after it. Next month, you can add a second layer.
So, peels are an excellent option to help target that. They're suitable for any skin coloring. So anybody with darker skin tones can do that.
Additionally, a microinfusion is another option. You can use specific ingredients. Like we have our EXO-SPOT, okay? This is coming out. This has tranexamic acid and glutathione.
What else do we have in here? DNA repair enzymes. We have the Kakadu plum, which contains a high percentage of super-potent vitamin C.
There's only a tiny bit because you actually don't want to needle with high percentages of vitamin C. This is mentioned very lightly, but as a benefit.
Alpha-lipoic acid and niacinamide. All of these things are really good for targeting spotting. Obviously, that's why it's called EXO-SPOT.
So you can microinfuse these into the skin. Anybody can do this. It doesn't matter what your skin color is.
So I would highly suggest something like this. This can be done once every two weeks. And then, just like the needling itself can sometimes, the action of needling can stimulate and quicken the turnover in your skin.
That can help remove pigmentation more quickly. However, with microinfusing these ingredients, you're getting them deeply into your skin. That will help with it.
And, of course, you can alternate treatments, such as doing your microinfusion once or twice, and then move on to a peel. Always follow the recommended wait times after each treatment, before proceeding to the next one.
However, all of these options are great, and it doesn't matter what color your skin is; they are safe for darker skin types, which is what we're primarily focusing on.
Yes. A good point is that there's no mandatory pre-treatment for microinfusion.
That is correct. You could start this right off.
I always recommend that because they want to do something immediately.
And I understand that.
And it's almost as if they get so sad when I say they have to pre-treat with something for a month.
It's like a death sentence to them. They're like, ‘Yep, I'm ready to start now. Oh my God.’
This is a great way to start.
Get started.
Get started with this while you're pre-treating with your Fade Bright. You can receive one treatment of this, and then you're pre-treated for the next month, covering those four weeks. Now you're ready for your peel. So things can start happening immediately because you don't have to pre-treat to do the microinfusion.
No, that's true. After microinfusion treatment, as directed, we recommend waiting; it's 72 hours before you can start using retinoids again.
Yes.
So, if you did undergo this microinfusion and we want to get you using your Fade Bright, you'll have to wait about three days after your infusion. Then you can get started on your Fade Bright, Hydroquinone, or whatever product you're using. Then you can start getting into that.
And you know, then again, there's no need to stop treatments or anything. You can do another one of these.
And then by the time that month has gone by, you've done two of those treatments. You've been using your Fade Bright and the rest of your regimen. Now you're ready to start with one of your peels, as your skin is prepped correctly.
LED is also an excellent thing.
I have it right here.
The Illuminate mask.
Yeah. Red Infrared is good for everything, right?
Healing, you can use that after any of these treatments.
But you can also use the yellow for hyperpigmentation. And this mask obviously has the yellow. It has red, infrared, yellow, and blue.
The yellow is separate in the neck mask.
Yes.
But on the face mask, it's on.
But yellow is always on. It's actually in the same bulb as the red, I believe.
Yeah. It's like red, in the sense that you can't see it in the infrared spectrum. So you can see the red. So red, infrared, and yellow are what these little light bulbs are.
With dark skin, you don't want to go crazy with LED. There's a point where you don't necessarily want or need this on the strongest setting.
You could do this on a lighter setting if you're concerned. Because there's always somebody who's going to have a problem, this is too strong.
This is too whatever. They don't recommend this for my skin type. That's OK.
Right.
You know, you can use this on a milder setting, on the lower setting, and see that it's a blend of the three. This is very beneficial for pigmentation. It's very good for healing your skin. It's suitable for a variety of purposes and any skin color.
Yeah. That is a great, great…
I just wanted to touch on that because some people are concerned about darker skin types using specific LED colors.
There are different strengths to this.
Yes.
There are three strengths. You can leave it on a low strength if you are concerned.
Correct.
Alternatively, you can adjust it to medium or high. That's your choice. So, if you're concerned about the strength of the treatment on your skin, you can always use it on the lowest setting.
Absolutely. I have seen some fantastic photos of darker-skinned individuals who have acne marks. It leaves a dark mark.
You get that dark mark.
It might have been in either one of our email transformation videos, or you know how we send the transformation emails.
Every week, yeah. Every week, there's a transformation.
I'm not sure if it was there before I saw it, or if it was on our website. But I've seen some really, really nice before-and-afters. And they're typically using Jessner, Fade Bright.
Yes.
Or Mandelic and Fade Bright. But I feel like Jessner is a really.
I love Jessner.
Jessner is really popular if you're looking to do a monthly peel. It's a great place to start.
Yeah, and we also have a lot of customers with richer skin tones.
Yeah, for sure.
A lot of them. That's something we deal with every single day in the Facebook group.
Absolutely.
And it's that's why we're just so on top of this.
Yes.
You know, just like we do, you have to pre-treat a little bit longer.
Yeah. For sure.
And that brings me to one more point: you have to pre-treat a little bit longer. If you have very dark skin, such as a Fitzpatrick 6, and you want to undergo a stronger peel. You want to get started with a Jessner. Sometimes four weeks isn't long enough to pre-treat.
Right. True.
The lighter your skin, the less aggressive you can be with your pre-treating.
Right.
However, the darker your skin tone, the more pronounced your pigmentation, the more prone you are to PIH, and the longer you may need to pre-treat.
Right.
For instance, if you are prone to breakouts and have many marks on your face, you may need to pre-treat for, let's say, six weeks before undergoing the peel, because I would rather you be safe than sorry.
Absolutely.
You know your skin, and you know how it responds. And if your skin is aggressively responding, then you know to pre-treat longer, use a milder product, and consider using something like the Mandelic or Lactic.
Don't just start with Jessner if you know your skin is super responsive to things.
However, we have seen real results from real customers, and you can always see those. The Facebook group is a great place to see those transformations, as well as on our website, where we feature customer experience photos and showcase real-life people who have used these products.
Yep. And that's on every product page. Just the strip of photos directly below the product add-to-cart button.
Yes. Additionally, we have a section on Peel University on our website that will also provide you with educational information.
And that talks about it. There's a whole section on learning your Fitzpatrick skin type.
Additionally, if you have darker skin, pre-treatment is necessary. This is what can happen. These are the recommended acid percentages.
Yeah. We're dedicated to education and helping individuals transform their skin in a safe, effective, and natural way.
I just answered an email this morning with somebody. They didn't tell me their skin type, but I could tell it was an Indian person, right? Just by their name.
Yes.
And they were asking, 'Why don't you have TCA 50?' When will you release TCA 50? And then I had to, like, go into the whole explanation of, ‘Yeah, number one, that's not safe. Please don't use that, especially don't use that on your skin tone.’
Yes.
That is just so unsafe. Use lower percentages. Prep for a longer time. Use your inhibitors. I said, ‘Please start with, like, a 7 or a 13. Don't even think about a TCA 50. Don't think about TCA 30 either.’
I had to school them a little bit, even though they didn't provide me with the information. Sometimes it's easy enough to tell. But different people's names, you can tell, ‘Ah, this is gonna be a problem for you.’
Of course. It's a little alarming that we receive a lot of emails when people undergo professional treatment in some places. Perhaps not even a chemical peel, but rather a CO2 laser, something more aggressive. The person will send over a photo, and they have darker skin, maybe a 4, 5, or 6.
It always amazes me that the professionals providing the treatment don't educate them and have them pre-treat many times.
Yep.
It's just, it really amazes me.
How many of them out there are just about getting you into the treatment room and providing that service? You know, because a CO2 laser is expensive. Let's say it's like $1,500.
My Lord, yes.
They just want to get you in there, get you in a package, get you getting stuff done. They're not even concerned if you come back after that treatment or whatever. It's like they just want to get you in there.
Now, there are some good ones because I do talk to people that, ‘Yes, yes, I was put on a prescription of hydroquinone and all that kind of stuff.’
Beautiful. I love it when I hear things like that.
Sad when it's the other way, though.
There's a lot of it.
It's very unfortunate. I had answered an email, which you may have seen in the inbox as well, about a week ago.
It was a gentleman, and he was from Australia. Really good looking guy, darker skin, went and had a CO2 laser, and literally it was like a month after his treatment, and it was very sad because he had a ton of like, like you could see…
The marks.
You could see the marks from the actual tool.
Yep.
Like every place she went, a click of his skin had now caused pigmentation, and he was…
I see a lot of those, like hatch marks, which are little squared-off dots or whatever.
Whatever the shape of the tool they're using, you could literally see.
And that's preventable.
It is preventable. And it's sad that these people, like you say, are paying quite a bit of money for these treatments,
Expensive treatments.
And they're not even being guided. Therefore, you must be your own advocate for your own skin. So, even if you're not using our line, if you're having…
Yeah, but you're going to get something done. Start on a melanin inhibitor. I hope you see us; you're probably googling something.
100%. If you're googling pigmentation issues and things, and you come across us and you're deciding that you're a little too scared to do something on your own, and you want to go to a professional, please, please ask about pretreatment.
And if they say, ‘Oh, there's no pretreatment,’ and you are a Fitzpatrick four, five, or six, I would think twice about using that professional for sure.
Yeah. If they're not going to give you all the proper warnings.
Yeah, absolutely. And that's what we're all about. We're dedicated to education, and we want everyone to have a pleasant and safe experience while achieving results.
Yes.
Yeah. So, if they stick to it, they'll definitely be encouraged. And by taking those photos that we always say as well.
Yeah. Take your photo on day one, day 30, day 60, and day 90, just once a month. Before your subsequent treatment, take a picture. Then you can compare them side by side, see your changes. It'll keep you motivated, help you stay on your regimen, and keep you excited about the future.
Yes. 100%. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to contact us at support@platinumskincare.com.
Yep. Alternatively, you can call us Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time at 1-800-917-3155.
And then, of course, our glorious Facebook Gurus group.
Yep. Platinum Skin Care Gurus on Facebook. Join that. There are over 40,000 people in that group. You can view all their photos, read their stories, and see what help they're being recommended.
Absolutely.
Because it's just a simple way to find out what to do.
And don't be embarrassed to post a question on there. I had a lady who sent an email the other day. And believe me, we're more than happy to answer private emails. And I understand if you're a private person and don't want to share it.
However, she was deeply embarrassed about some personal issues she was facing. And I really feel that she would have been just fine posting what she needed to post. And we would have had so many people reach out with amazing things.
There are a lot of lurkers. And they'll say that too. Like, ‘I've been in this group for a year, and I've been scared. And this is a very vulnerable photo.’
Well, don't worry. Nobody on Facebook can see it but the people in the group. The people in the group are there to learn and to help you. They're not there to criticize you.
And our moderators are pretty good. They're in there, too. You know, if anything funny starts going on, they're pretty quick to shut off some comments or say something.
You're safe. And if the worst comes to the worst, you can also take the photo down, delete your comment, or delete your post if you wish.
Very true. Very true. However, if you're not comfortable with that, you can always contact us by email.
Yes, we'll help you.
Absolutely. Have a great day.
