Coveteur.com - How to get rid of Hyperpigmentation once and for all

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Tackling brown spots is tricky business, and particularly so for women of color. Or, maybe more accurately, there hasn’t been as much research and definitely not as many products that address discoloration in skin tones outside the lighter end of the spectrum. “Some popular formulations for brown spots like a plain glycolic acid can do wonders in lighter skin types, but that alone would not make that much of a difference in darker skin,” explains Dr. Heather Woolery-Lloyd, a Florida dermatologist and director of ethnic skin care at the University of Miami. “The melanocytes [melanin-producing cells] in darker skin have a predisposition to be more hyperreactive—the ‘factory’ is more efficient—so you’re fighting a little bit of an uphill battle.”

You might have heard of a prescription called hydroquinone, which inhibits the production of excess melanin and is extremely effective, but it is a somewhat controversial ingredient and can’t be used long-term. And even the big guns, like lasers, aren’t usually an option. “Darker skin patients would say, ‘Well, can’t you just laser this off?’ And the answer was no,” Dr. Woolery-Lloyd says. “Sometimes the laser cannot distinguish between the brown spot and the brown skin, so the skin itself can get burned. Also, because—again, the very efficient factory—it just may not be as effective. So, that’s another option that's been completely eliminated. ”

This is why Woolery-Lloyd launched Specific Beauty, a full start-to-finish skin-care line to help even out the skin tone. The signature product is a spot-fighting serum that uses a blend of ingredients proven safe for skin of color.