The best treatments available for your type of skin pigmentation.
What is skin pigmentation? Skin pigmentation is caused by changes in the melanin levels in your skin. Melanin is the natural pigment responsible for skin, hair and eye colour, and when levels become unstable, skin can end up darker in places. When parts of skin become darker, it's referred to as hyperpigmentation. Darkened patches vary dramatically in size and shape, and can develop anywhere on the body.
A destabilisation in melanin production can be triggered by a number of external stressors, but some of the most common causes of pigmentation include too much sun exposure, hormonal changes, ageing, or trauma to the skin. Inflammation is a further leading cause of skin pigmentation.
There are different types of skin pigmentation, and the best treatment for any of them depends heavily on which type is involved - read on for the most common four, and what tends to work for each.
What causes skin pigmentation?
The basic underlying cause of pigmentation is excess or uneven production of melanin. Melanin is manufactured by skin cells called melanocytes and is the pigment that gives skin its colour.
There are a number of factors that can alter melanin production, leading to the possible onset of pigmentation. Some of the most common include:
- Too much sun exposure
- Some medications, such as those used in chemotherapy
- Hormonal changes in pregnancy
- Certain diseases such as Addison's disease - a rare endocrine disease linked to adrenal insufficiency and reduced production of certain hormones
If you're uncertain as to the root of your hyperpigmentation, it's worth speaking with a dermatologist who can diagnose the underlying cause - treatment options differ meaningfully depending on what's actually driving it, from topical brightening agents through to in-clinic laser therapy.
The 4 most common types of skin pigmentation:
Sun spots
Sun spots, liver spots, age spots and solar lentigines are all names for the same thing: pigmentation that develops in response to accumulated sun exposure over a lifetime. They're most likely to appear later in life, and are most frequently found on the hands, face, arms, and other areas routinely exposed to the sun.
Sun spots can range in colour from light brown to dark brown or even black, and are worth monitoring rather than ignoring, since changes in shape, colour or texture can occasionally signal something that needs a dermatologist's attention rather than a cosmetic one.
Diet plays a modest supporting role here: published research has found that dietary lycopene - the carotenoid that gives tomatoes their colour - can reduce UV-induced skin reddening (erythema) by around 40% after several weeks of consistent daily intake, working as an antioxidant from within rather than as a topical barrier. It's a genuine, if modest, protective effect, and not a substitute for daily SPF, which remains the single most effective way to prevent sun spots from forming or worsening in the first place.
Once sun spots are established, in-clinic options like Q-switched Nd:YAG or fractional lasers tend to achieve the most noticeable fading, while topical brighteners (vitamin C, niacinamide, retinoids) can help with mild cases or maintenance between sessions.
Melasma
Melasma affects women considerably more than men. It most commonly appears on the face and is often triggered by hormonal change - pregnancy being the classic trigger, which is why it's sometimes called the "pregnancy mask." Melasma can be made worse by excessive sun exposure, certain birth control medications, and stress, and is also common during the hormonal shifts of menopause.
Because melasma is hormonally driven rather than purely sun-induced, it's notoriously prone to recurrence - even a successful round of treatment can be undone by the next hormonal shift. Consistent sun protection and, where relevant, addressing the underlying hormonal driver alongside any topical or laser treatment tends to produce more durable results than treating the pigmentation in isolation.
Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH)
Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation develops as a result of trauma to the skin, and is often the legacy of blemishes, injury, burns, or aggressive clinical treatments such as chemical peels or dermabrasion. It should improve naturally over time as skin heals and cells renew, though it can take months or, in some cases, years to fully resolve.
Because PIH is triggered by inflammation and skin trauma, prevention matters as much as treatment: gentler skincare during any active breakout or healing period, consistent SPF, and avoiding picking at blemishes all reduce the likelihood of PIH forming in the first place. Once established, options range from topical brighteners through to the same laser and light-based treatments used for other forms of hyperpigmentation - though darker skin tones should be especially selective about which laser is used, given the elevated risk of triggering further pigmentation with certain heat-based devices.
Cherry angiomas
Not sun-related pigmentation, despite often being grouped with it - cherry angiomas are small clusters of dilated blood vessels rather than excess melanin, distinguished by their bright red colour. They range from tiny dots to larger, sometimes raised clusters, and genetic predisposition plays a bigger role in who develops them than sun exposure does. They're generally harmless and are typically treated - where treatment is wanted at all - with cryotherapy (freezing) or a pulsed dye laser, which targets blood vessels specifically rather than pigment.
Always consult your medical professional if you have a medical condition, or an existing health protocol, before beginning any new supplementation regime.
Beyond pigmentation: strengthening the skin barrier as you age
Pigmentation is one visible sign of how skin changes over time, but it's rarely the only one. As skin ages, two things happen alongside any pigmentation changes: the skin barrier - the outermost layer responsible for retaining moisture and keeping irritants out - gradually weakens, and collagen and elastin production slows, which is what shows up as fine lines and wrinkles. A weaker barrier also makes skin more reactive generally, which can make existing pigmentation appear more pronounced simply because surrounding skin looks less even and hydrated by comparison.
Supporting the skin barrier and addressing fine lines isn't a fix for pigmentation specifically, but it's a genuinely useful parallel track - skin that's well-hydrated, barrier-intact and appropriately supported tends to look more even overall, which is often part of what people are really after when pigmentation is the presenting complaint.
The science behind the LYMA ecosystem
LYMA's product range is built around different mechanisms, each engineered with a specific role in mind.
LYMA Power Youth Skincare is formulated with Genolytic™ technology and a multi-weight hyaluronic acid architecture, designed to support the skin barrier and hydration at more than one depth rather than sitting on the surface alone. It's built around appearance-based, cosmetically compliant ingredients intended to help skin look and feel more resilient over time.
The LYMA Supplement combines patented, clinically-dosed ingredients engineered for bioavailability, developed with longevity scientist Professor Paul Clayton. Rather than a general multivitamin, it's formulated around ingredients dosed to match the levels used in their supporting research, with skin, sleep and stress among the areas it's designed to support.
The LYMA Laser uses cold, near-infrared low-level laser therapy - photobiomodulation - to stimulate collagen production without heat or damage to the skin, with published clinical data specifically around wrinkles and skin tightening.
LYMA ID² is formulated around prebiotic fibre diversity, a multi-vitamin complex, and chelated minerals, designed to support the gut microbiome as part of the broader picture of skin and overall health - reflecting a growing body of research connecting gut health to skin condition, though this is a newer and still-developing area of the science compared with the more established mechanisms above.
