By Lara Evans Bracciante

Walk down any Main Street and take note of the array of skin tones that make up this multihued world. Skin colors run the gamut from pale to golden to a deep, rich brown. According to the New York City-based Skin of Color Society, soon the majority of people in this country will have pigmented skin of some hue. Yet misconceptions abound about darker skin—what it needs and what it doesn’t to keep it glowing and healthy.

“Skin of color” refers to a mixed bag of ethnic heritage—African American, Asian, Hispanic or Latino, Native American, Native Indian, and Pacific Islander. According to experts, only Celts and Scandinavians are purely “light-skinned.” The rest of us, more than likely, have genes from ancestors we maybe didn’t know we had, and that contribution means our skin may react in idiosyncratic ways to how it’s handled, to certain products, and to exposure to the environment.

Despite what we may assume about skin hue and sensitivity, light skin can in fact withstand stress much better than skin of a darker tone. The reason lies below the surface. Pigmented cells in brown skin are larger and more loosely packed, which means the skin is often sensitive and tends to overreact to certain stimuli. For example, darker skin is more likely to scar and get irritated. Long after a blemish or cut heals, a dark mark is likely to linger on the skin. Even doing the right thing—using a sunscreen—can result in an unforeseen response, like a blotchy, reddened complexion.

So, what to do about this mysterious and over-responsive skin? First understand that the reason some skin flourishes with certain products while yours goes into panic mode is traceable to the complexities of your ancestry. Even if your complexion is pale, it may harbor the quirkiness of your family tree—a great-great-grandmother from China, say, or from Sardinia or Haiti.

Second, celebrate the good news—skin of color is less susceptible to signs of aging. Fine lines, wrinkles, and age spots are not as likely, which means there’s an age-defying appearance to those with darker skin.

Third, adjust your approach. Because darker skin is more sensitive, you need to use a gentle touch and avoid products with irritating chemicals. Be wary of products with glycolic acid, and think twice about dermabrasion—both commonly used skin treatments can irritate some darker skins, not rejuvenate them. Instead, try herb- and vitamin-based products, which work with the body to bring health to skin naturally.

What’s your type?
First you need to assess your skin type. Is it dry, oily, or normal? While this may sound basic, skin of color can be tricky; dark skin may appear oily when it’s really just reflecting light. Also, skin type can change over the years, so you may not be dealing with the kind of skin you pampered effectively in decades past.

Dermatologist Fran Cook-Bolden, MD, coauthor of Beautiful Skin of Color (HarperCollins, 2004), recommends a simple test to check your skin type. “Consider how your face feels in the middle of the day,” she says. “Is it dry and irritated? Are you wiping your face, because it feels a little oily? Or, do you not notice anything? In that case, you have normal skin.” People in this latter category have the luxury of tolerating most products well and can often use a light version of either the dry-skin or oily-skin protocol. But dry and oily types require special consideration.

All dried up
Dry skin often feels uncomfortable and itchy and appears flaky. In skin of color, this may be characterized as ashy skin. Pamela Dake, certified esthetician with Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy in Sonoma, California, suggests washing twice a day with a water-based, botanical cleanser. To ease dry skin, she says, “look for formulations that include aloe vera, calendula, green tea, orange peel oil, rose, or witch hazel.”

After cleansing, opt for hydration instead of using a toner to remove surface oil. Cook-Bolden suggests a mineralized water spray, such as Vichy Thermal Spa Water Spray, Avene Thermal Spring Water, or LaRoche Posay Thermal Spring Water. For maximum hydration, she says, seal the spritz with a moisturizer while the skin is still damp.

For a moisturizer, Dake recommends products containing aloe vera oil, carrot oil, evening primrose, honey, ginkgo biloba, glycerin, shea butter, and white grape. Where to find these all-natural answers for dry skin? Dake looks to the product lines Astara, Juice Beauty, and Jurlique—some, but certainly not all, of the available options. (Be a label reader, and ask for help from in-store experts.)

Seeking an oil change
Oily skin, and the acne often associated with it, can be tricky. Cook-Bolden explains that many people with oily skin tend to wash several times a day, scrubbing the skin harshly and using intense drying products to dispel excessive oil. Unfortunately, overdoing it can make matters worse. Aggressive treatment can further irritate and inflame already troubled skin. Instead, she says to cleanse simply with a cotton cloth or your fingertips two to three times a day.

Products containing apple juice, black cherry juice, cucumber, dandelion leaf, lemon juice, licorice root, organic lavender, and white grape juice, as well as vitamins A, B5, and C are good options for oily skin, explains Dake. If your skin still feels oily after washing, consider a toner to help remove excess oil, clear and minimize pores, and lessen shine. Avoid alcohol-based toners, which are over-drying and can make the skin feel dehydrated and tight rather than soft and invigorated.

Oily types often make the mistake of skipping the moisturizer. Drying out the skin may actually stimulate oil production. Some natural products even use a normalizing oil formula specifically for oily, unbalanced skin and acne. When choosing moisturizers, Dake says to look for such ingredients as calendula, chamomile oil, clary sage, echinacea, fruit juices, glycerin, quince, rose and rose water, and sea algae extract. She points to Dr. Hauschka, Avalon, and Juice Beauty as effective brands.

Here comes the sun
It can’t be said often enough: People of all skin types need to use sun protection. While people with skin of color may think they’re naturally protected from sun damage, they are actually more prone to react to exposure with dark marks and splotches. And while those with darker skin are less likely to develop skin cancer, when they do, it is more often the deadly kind—melanoma—and diagnosed late because of a lack of understanding about how it appears on dark skin.

For protection, Dake recommends products containing titanium oxide or zinc oxide dimethicone, both physical rather than chemical barriers, which can irritate the skin and break down after a couple of hours. The recommended daily sun protection factor (SPF) is 30. Because sunscreen loses its effectiveness after two hours, it needs to be reapplied. Another option: Spritz with a sunscreen spray, or dust the face with loose SPF-fortified foundation powders.

Less than diligent about sun protection in the past? Dake recommends natural bleaches like black elder extract, butylene glycol, hyaluronic acid, kojic acid, propylene glycol, and vitamin C to lighten dark marks.
Skin reflects not only what’s happening on the surface of the skin but also what’s going on underneath it. For optimum skin, think internal health as well. The same advice applies to all gradations of skin color—drink lots of water (avoid caffeine and alcohol), eat whole foods, minimize stress (which wreaks havoc with the complexion), get plenty of rest, and of course, steer clear of cigarette smoke.

Gimme Some Gamma

Here’s a tip from Dr. Andrew Weil for healthy nails (and hair and skin):
Get some gamma. Gamma-linolenic acid or GLA is often lacking in the diet, and that’s unfortunate but easily remedied. Good sources for GLA include evening primrose oil, black currant oil, and borage oil, which are easy-to-find and reasonably priced supplements. Dr. Weil recommends 500 mg of black currant oil twice a day. Fish oil supplements are another option. But keep taking them, because you may not see any results in the mirror for about eight weeks. www.DrWeil.com

Vitamin D Check

So you’re applying your daily sunscreen and seeking shade? That’s great for your skin, but you may be missing out on your vitamin D.

According to Susan Taylor, MD, a dermatologist in Philadelphia and author of Brown Skin: Dr. Susan Taylor’s Prescription for Flawless Skin, Hair and Nails (Amistad, 2003), darker skin is less likely to absorb the sunlight necessary for the body to manufacture sufficient amounts of vitamin D. According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III, a little more than 42 percent of 1,546 African American women surveyed had inadequate levels of vitamin D (compared with only 4 percent of Caucasian women), which means that when it comes to supplements—for beauty from the inside out—those with heavily pigmented skin have different needs.

This fat-soluble nutrient plays a primary role in our ability to absorb calcium and phosphorus, both critical for forming and maintaining strong bones. Vitamin D also works with a number of other vitamins, minerals, and hormones to promote bone mineralization. Without enough vitamin D, bones may become thin, brittle, or misshapen. Evidence also suggests that vitamin D may promote a healthy immune system and regulate cell growth.

While some foods, like fortified milk, contain some vitamin D, sunlight—which triggers the body to synthesize the vitamin—remains the most important requirement for this nutrient. However, people with heavily pigmented skin (especially those with very dark skin) are less able to produce this vitamin D. Avoiding sunlight further contributes to the problem.

The National Institutes of Health recommends 10 to 15 minutes of sun exposure at least two times a week to the face, arms, hands, or back without sunscreen. If you don’t want to risk even this amount of UV exposure, then make sure you take a daily vitamin D supplement. While there is—for now—no established recommended daily allowance, the suggested “adequate intake” for ages 19 to 50 is 200 International Units (IU) daily. People aged 51 to 70 need 400 IU daily, and those 71 and older need 600 IU daily.