Can Melanin Be Increased?
Melaninis a substance in your body that determines your skin, hair, and eye pigmentation.
The amount of melanin that melanocytes produce depends on several factors, including genetics.
AbElena/Getty Images
Types of Melanin
Melanocytes produce three main types of melanin.
These include:
Very few studies have shown that melanin production can be increased in the human body.
However, many of the studies have been conducted only in test tubes or on rodents.
This eating style can reduceinflammationand provide sufficient vitamins and minerals for melanin production.
What About Tanning?
While sun exposure does increase melanin production, it also carries a risk for skin cancer.
It’s important to protect your skin with sunscreens containing SPF 30 or higher, no matter yourskin tone.
Safer alternatives include sunless tanners and bronzers, which are considered safe.
They can affect how other cells in the body function and may impact the aging process.
Antioxidants work by soaking up free radicals so they can’t damage healthy cells.
Other Supplements
Research is still evolving about the effectiveness of supplements in increasing melanin production.
It’s also important to use caution with tanning accelerators ortanning pillssince these may pose certain safety risks.
It also serves several important purposes.
When you spend more time in the sun, your melanocytes produce more melanin.
Melanin absorbs harmful ultraviolet (UV) light that can cause skin cancer.
By removing ROS, melanin helps eliminate free radicals that contribute to stress, premature aging, andskin cancer.
In addition to providing pigmentation, melanin plays an important role in protecting cells from harmful ultraviolet light rays.
What Conditions Affect Melanin Levels?
Research is still evolving about the effectiveness of different supplements for increasing melanin production.
2023;105:105574. doi:10.1016/j.jff.2023.105574
Vila M.Neuromelanin, aging, and neuronal vulnerability in parkinson’s disease.Mov Disord.
2019 Jan 24;4(2):e124387.
American Cancer Society.Tanning pills and other tanning products.
U. S. Food and Drug Administration.Tanning Pills.
Cao C, Xiao Z, Wu Y, Ge C.Diet and skin aging-from the perspective of food nutrition.Nutrients.
2019;8(8):259.
Published 2019 Jul 31. doi:10.3390/antiox8080259
Keen M, Hassan I.Vitamin E in dermatology.Indian Dermatol Online J.
2018;19(5):1509.
2018;19(9):2845.
2014;9(11):e113266.
2017;186(1):1-10. doi:10.1093/aje/kwx024
