Skin Color
Introduction
The first thing that a person notices when he/she sees another person is his/her skin color. In most cases, the skin color further defines ones origin or race. In other cases, it enables one to identify with his place of origin, his /her identity and his/her culture, amongst others. In other words, the skin color brings a sense of identity in a human being. There are different types of skin colors. The colors range from people who are referred to as the white people (Caucasians) also known as the light-skinned people to those referred to as the black people also known as the dark skinned people. These skin colors have tones. This is what causes two light-skinned people to have different appearances in terms of their skin color. Overall, the main cause of our different skin color is the present of a pigment known as melanin. It causes the different skin colors, skin tones and the lack of its causes some skin disorders known as albinism.
Melanin
The main producers of melanin in our bodies are known as melanocytes. They produce melanin through a process known as melanogenesis. An enzyme tyrosinase, activates melanin, which makes the eyes, hair and eye colors to be as they are. There are two types of melanin produced by the melanocytes. These are pheomelanin and eumelanin. The former is red in color and the latter is dark brown in color. The production of the amount and type of melanin are regulated by various genes working under incomplete dominance. One receives a copy of each gene from each of the parents. In the process, a gene can come in more than one allele, which ends up bringing the different skin tones. Apart from creating the skin color, melanin regulates the amount of sun ultraviolet radiation penetrating the skin by being absorbed. As much as these ultraviolet radiation aides in vitamin D production, too much exposure may lead to health problems.
Types of Skin Colors
There are six skin types. There is skin type I, II, III, IV, V and VI according to the Fitzpatrick scale. These skin types can also be classified as the six major skin colors. Type I is also known as the Celtic type. This is the white or the very light skin color. A small percentage of the Europeans (2%) and the Americans have this skin color. These people have very fair skin; they also have red freckles and hair. They do not tan and have sunburns when exposed to the sun. They are 1-5 points on the von Luschan scale. People with such a skin type need to apply sunscreen or sun protection oils before walking into the sun. They also stand a higher risk of getting skin cancer more than all the other skin types (Clarys 2384).
The second skin type or skin color is known as skin type II. It is also known as the light-skinned European. They do not burn as the Celtic type but they are vulnerable to the sunburns. They also do not tan. In general, they also have very sensitive skin as the Celtic type. Most Europeans have these skin color or skin type as the name is derived from them. On the von Luschan scale, they are ganged at 6-10 points (Clarys 235).
The third skin type or skin color is known as type III. They are also known as dark skinned Europeans or the light intermediate skin colored people. These people do not get sunburns as frequently as the other two skin colored people. In fact, they rarely get sunburns. They also tan on many occasions. Although they can use protective oils when going out in the sun, they are not at a higher risk than the preceding skin types. On the von Luschan scale, there are at 11-15 points. They have a lower risk of getting skin color (Kottak 150).
The fourth skin type is known as the skin type IV. It is also known as the Mediterranean or olive skin types. This skin type tans easily but rarely gets sunburns. A person with this skin is not at a very high risk of getting such diseases as skin cancer. On the von Luschan scale, this skin type is at 16-21 points. This is a resistant skin type. However, people with this skin are recommended to take care especially when exposing themselves to certain procedures or the sun because of the tanning.
The fifth skin type is known as skin type V. This skin type is also known as the dark or the brown type. This skin type hardly gets any sunburns and it is insensitive. However, it tans well. The Hispanics and some blacks have this type of skin color. On the von Luschan’s scale, people with this skin type score 22-28 points. These people are not at a great danger of having skin problems such as skin cancer. Their melanin levels are higher as compared to those of the preceding skin types are (Kottak 155).
The last skin type is known as skin type VI. This skin color is also known as the black color. It is also known as the very dark skin color. People with this skin color do not tan and they do not get sunburns. Their melanin levels are higher than the other types. People with this color are mostly found in Africa although they are also found in America and other parts of the world. On the von Luschan’s scale, they are at 29-36 points. Their chances of getting skin problems such as skin cancer are lower than for the people with the other skin types (Kottak 160).
Skin Color Genetics
A gene known as KIT ligand is known to be responsible for the migration, proliferation and survival of melanocytes. A gene mutation known as A326G is associated with the difference in the color of the African Americans who are of European and African descent. This gene is also estimated to be responsible for the 16-21% of the difference in melanin between the non-Africans and the Africans. This gene mutation can be found in almost 80% of Asian and European samples as compared to a 10% found in the Africans (Brilliant 45).
A peptide known as ASIP (Agouti signaling peptide) performs as an inverse agonist. It acts on behalf of alpha-MSH, thus preventing the eumelanin from being produced. The allele has being found working with Agouti signaling peptides. An allele known as rs2424984 has been recognized as one of the indicators that influence the tone of the skin. This is 19-24% in Africans, 74% in Asians and 81% in Europeans (Rees 67). Another known as A 2- SNP haplotype is also connected to the differing skin colors of the people of Europe. Another allele known as SLC24A5 controls calcium in melanocytes and is significant in the melanogenesis process. The allele called Thr111 Ala is a major factor in the existence of the light tone of the Europeans. It is found in 99.8% of the Europeans. However, this allele almost does not exist in African and Asian people. It contributes 24-41% of the skin tone difference between the Africans and the Europeans (Rees 68). Furthermore, its concentration is speculated to have increased in the past 10,000 years.
MATP or SLC45A2 helps in the carrying and tyrosine processing. This is a melanin precursor. It is highly associated with skin color of the Europeans of today. Like the other allele, its concentration is mostly in Europeans and not in the other races. A gene known as TYR encodes the tyrosine enzyme. This enzyme is a factor in the production of melanin. Its allele, Seri92tyr is in 39-51% of the Europeans and connected with the light skin found in mixed-race people. On the other hand, OCA2 (Oculocutaneous albinism II) helps in the control of melanocytes pH levels. The allele known as rs1800141 has accounted for approximately 8% of the tone variance between the East Asian people and the Africans. This allele can be traced in almost 86% of the East Asian people but cannot be found in the African and the European people (Rees 69). Although they are not associated with directly affecting the tone of the skin, melanocortin, attractin, tautomerace and dopachrome have been associated with the change in the skin color of the East Asian people.
Gene mutations can cause the way the skin color appears. For example, oculocutaneous albinism is one of the effects of gene mutation. This is when one lacks pigment in the hair, eyes and skin. The four major types of this disorder are cause by the mutation of SLC45A2, OCA2 and TYR genes. A gene called MC1R is fundamentally in charge of assessing the production of eumelanin and pheomelanin in people (Brilliant 50). The mutating of the alleles of the gene polymorphic has been identified as a cause of such features as pale skin, which is resistant to tanning, red hair, amongst other features. However, these alleles are not associated with change of skin in Eurasian people although they have to differ in frequency in Asians, Africans and Europeans people.
Skin Color Evolution
Rodgers with other scientists experimented on the differences in MC1R occurrences in people of diverse origins and made a comparison with the ones in the humans and the chimpanzees from different places on Earth. After the experiment, Rodgers concluded that the humans’ ancestors were light skinned but with dark hair approximately 5 million years ago (Rodgers et al. 107). As time past, the hair fell off in order to let the heat to dissipate fully through sweat. The tone of the skin also became darker in order to offer protection against sunlight’s folate depletion. About 1.2 million years ago, after the evolution to Homo ergasters to Homo sapiens, the ancestors of today’s people had identical receptor proteins as the Africans of today. Unfortunately, the light skin could not survive the scotching African sun. Humans lasted with this skin color for another 1.1 million years.
Between 70,000 and 100,000 years ago, the humans of today started moving to the north and further away from the tropics of the Earth (Hochberg 309). They did this for they wanted to be exposed to as less scotching sunlight as they could. They also needed to be in use of their clothes during the cold weathers in the north. The north had lesser folate photodestruction. In these places, the pressure preventing the light-skin genes from surviving was much lower. The lighter skin has an advantage over the darker skin for it produces more vitamin D. This helped these people of the north adapt to the region in a much easier way. This is one of the major reasons that explain the existence of the people of the northern countries as light skinned and those of the African countries as dark skinned.
A hypothesis that has been there for quite some time suggests that light skin selection due to high vitamin absorption took place after people began moving away from Africa. This was around 40,000 years ago (Jablonski 620). However, there are those who contradict this hypothesis and suggest that the latitudes found in the north allowed vitamin D synthesis, which joined up with food from hunting. However, the emergence of agriculture brought the adaptation of the skin in maxi maximizing vitamin D synthesis hence the light skin. In this theory, the reduction of hunting meat made the skin turn white for settling many years in Asia and Europe. A study conducted due to this theory suggests that the allele that makes the white skin may have come into existence as late as 6,000 to 10,000 years ago (Jablonski 587). Farming is said to have started in this same period.
Pigmentation that is irregular
Some people have irregular pigmentation. This uneven pigmentation has some sort of effect no matter the race background or type of person. In such cases, a person may have a darker or lighter skin than normal. In other cases, there may be freckling or patches of a different color than the normal skin. This pigmentation occurs because the body is producing either insufficient or extra melanin. Excess production of melanin is also referred to as hyperpigmentation. Different types of these disorders are melasma, chloasma and solar lentiego (Hansen 56). Melasma is a condition where the skin darkens more than normal. Chloasma is a situation where the skin discolors due to hormones. The hormonal changes are normally caused by pregnancy, estrogen replacement treatments, and contraceptives, amongst others. Solar lentigo is also referred to as senile freckles or liver spots. This is when the skin has dark spots due to the sun and age. These spots mostly occur in adults who have stayed in the sun but do not use sun protection products (Klosterman 14).
Hyperpigmentation can also be brought about by blemish remnants, rashes and wounds, which add up to the damage of the skin. This mostly occurs in people who have skin tones that are darker than the rest of the people. Being exposed to the sun without protection is another main source of having a darkened skin. This also causes discoloration and brown spots. Although they are referred to as liver spots, they have nothing to do with the liver. Solar lentigenes develop as brown patches of different sizes on medium tones or lighter skin colors. These freckled patches accumulate on the areas that are re last protected from the sun. These areas include the chest, the face, legs, forearms, back arms, amongst other areas. Those with darker skin color see these discolorations as ashen-gray areas or patches (Hansen 70).
Sun’s Exposure
As mentioned earlier, the work of melanin is to protect the body. This takes place when it absorbs the suns rays into the body. The body absorbs the sun’s rays excessively; the radiation can cause indirect or direct damaging of the DNA to the skin. The body tries to rectify this situation by releasing more melanin. Due to this process, the skin color darkens further. In other cases, the excessive exposure causes sunburns. In other cases, for the skin colors that tan, artificial ultra violet radiation makes this happen. The UV rays can cause skin color change in two major mechanisms. There are rays of the sun known as UVA radiation. This radiation makes oxidative stress (Low 82). This stress leads to the oxidation of the produced melanin, which encourages the melanin to darken rapidly.
After this step, the melanin increases. Melanogenesis contributes to the delay of the tanning, which starts being evident after approximately seventy-two hours. This tan, which is developed after an increased melanin level, stays longer than the one developed by oxidizing melanin that was already there. Any skin color has a reacts to the sun’s exposure. The skin tone can vary from being deep dark to almost being colorless. However, the colorless one is mostly visible as a reddish color due to the blood vessels underneath the skin. Americans and Europeans mostly have lighter eyes, hair and skin color. However, it is not a hundred percent in everyone. On the other hand, Africans have darker eyes, hair and skin color. It is not always so in all cases. The large concentrations of melanin in the dark skin offer protection against ultraviolet rays and cancers of the skin. The light-skinned or the white people have a greater risk of getting this cancerous diseases by a tenfold as compared to the people of a darker skin color. In other cases, the UVA rays are believed to mix with folic acid, which is a danger to the health (Low 82).
In some societies, avoiding the sun as much as possible was a norm in traditional times. This mostly took place during noontime and the afternoon. During these times, people had their meals in shades then slept to avoid the afternoon sun. Although the dark skin is known to be good in terms of disease protection, it has its own disadvantage. People living in areas of high latitude such as the African Americans, are feared to encounter insufficient vitamin D. This takes place in dark people because the large amount of melanin in the skin prevents the synthesis of vitamin D. a couple of researches carried out on the people living in Africa have proven that they have lesser vitamin D levels than the whites living in America. On the other hand, further research has proven that the low vitamin D levels may also be cause by reasons (Afrika 70). For example, women with the dark skin have been found to have parathyroid hormone, which is associated with the outcomes of the adverse cardiovascular, at lower levels of the vitamin D as compared to the white women.
Skin Color Cultural Aspects
As mentioned earlier, the first thing to be noticed when they first see a person is their skin color. However, the importance of the difference in these skin colors varies socially among the different cultures and people of the world. Depending on the skin color, different cultures had and still have different perceptions. For example, in most African cultures in the past, children born with albinism were killed immediately, abandoned or secluded. Today, such people have not been fully accepted, as there are African communities that associate them with witchcraft.
Races are mostly classified in accordance to the skin color. However, there opinion differences as to when the color of the skin started determining the race (Dreisinger 65). Overall, it is agreed that the skin color has brought about the diverse beliefs and perceptions of different cultures, people and societies. Slavery and colonization by the American and European countries brought the perception and the belief that the dark color is uncivilized and to be looked down upon while the white color is to be respected and is civilized. In other words, the dark skin color is inferior and the white skin color is superior. In the days of slavery, people with the lighter skin tones were considered as being more beautiful, more intelligent and corporative as compared to the other African Americans. In most cases, people with this skin color were more likely to work in the masters’ houses and were treated when in the plantations (Dreisinger56).
In most cases, those of the lighter skin tone were given a chance to get an education while those of the darker skin tone worked in the fields with no education chances. This preference in the lighter skin torn of the people of African origin can be noted even today. There are men who go out specifically searching for women who are light skinned. Jill Nelson who was a journalist once commented that it was impossible to be black and to be the prettiest. This was during the twentieth century. Although civilization has greatly penetrated today’s society, there are people who still perceive the light skin as beautiful and the dark skin as ugly. For example, there are African women who will go to great lengths in order to make their skin colors go a lighter complexion higher than it already is. Unfortunately, many end up damaging their skin and their health in general.
Conclusion
Genetics, melanin and the sun amongst other factors contribute to the appearance of people’s skin colors and tones. It is important to know their skin types and tones so that they can effectively take care of them. Although civilization has changed people’s perception of the cultural aspect of the skin color, it is significant that any perception be positive and not of negative nature. The sun is of significance and a source of misery if the right precautions are not taken when exposed to it. Knowing ones skin type and taking the necessary measures in taking care of it is the best way in avoid sun and skin related problems.
Works Cited
Afrika, Llaila. Melanin: What Makes Black People Black. New York, NY: Seaburn, 2009. Print.
Brilliant, Murray. Gene Polymorphism and Human Pigmentations: Final Report. Rockville, MD: National Criminal Justice Reference Service, 2008. Print.
Clarys, P., K. Alewaeters, R. Lambrecht, and A. O. Barel. “Skin Color Measurements: Comparison between Three Instruments: the Chromameter<sup>®</sup>, the Dermaspectrometer<sup>®</sup> and the Mexameter<sup>®</sup>.” Skin Research and Technology. 6.4 (2000): 230-238. Print.
Dreisinger, Baz. Near Black: White-to-black Passing in American Culture. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 2008. Print.
Hansen, Devon. Shades of Change: Suntanning and the Twentieth-Century American Dream. , 2007. Print.
Hochberg, Z., and A.R. Templeton. “Evolutionary Perspective in Skin Color, Vitamin D and Its Receptor.” Hormones. 9.4 (2010): 307-311. Print
Jablonski, Nina. “The Evolution of Human Skin and Skin Color.” Annual Review of Anthropology. 33 (2004): 585-623. Print.
Klosterman, Lorrie. Skin. Tarrytown, New York: Marshall Cavendish Benchmark, 2009. Print. 13
Kottak, Conrad. Physical Anthropology and Archaeology. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2004. Print.
Low, Katherine. Intents to Sunbathe and Sun Protect: Expectancy-value Predictors Across Differing Culture Groups and Skin Types. , 2004. Print.
Rees, JL. “Genetics of Hair and Skin Color.” Annual Review of Genetics. 37 (2003): 67-90. Print
Rogers, Alan, David Iltis & Stephen Wooding. “Genetic Variation at the MC1R Locus and the Time since Loss of Human Body Hair”. Current Anthropology, 45 (2004): 105–108.
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