White spots on the skin can be caused by a variety of factors, including skin proteins or dead cells becoming trapped under the skins surface, depigmentation, or color loss due to vitiligo or another health condition. Here are some additional details about white patches on the skin:
Causes:
- Milia: small, white or yellow bumps that are often painless and not considered harmful
- Pityriasis Alba: a non-cancerous skin condition that causes flaky, scaly, itchy red patches of discolored skin that turn into pale white spots over time when healed
- Vitamin deficiencies: a deficiency of vitamin B12 in the body can lead to low levels of melatonin, contributing to the white spots on your skin including your face. Deficiencies in vitamins D and vitamin E can also cause white patches on the skin
- Sunspots: white spots where skin pigment has been lost. These spots usually cause no symptoms, are 1-3 millimeters (mm) in size, and tend to appear first on the legs before progressing to the arms, upper back, and face
- Lichen sclerosus: an uncommon condition that causes thin, patchy white spots on the skin in both males and females. It often appears in the genital areas. The cause is unknown, but researchers think it may be related to an overactive immune system or hormonal imbalance
Treatment:
- To minimize the appearance of white patches on the skin, you can resort to home remedies using natural ingredients such as aloe vera, neem oil, honey, apple cider vinegar, basil, etc.
- Dermatologists may recommend treatments such as ultraviolet light treatment in combination with topical medications, bleaching the skin surrounding large white patches to blend them, tattooing over white patches, or surgery to remove the upper portions of affected skin, if medications and light therapy do not work
- Testing skin care products on several small areas of your skin first can help predict whether you’ll experience a negative skin reaction. If it is difficult to pinpoint the exact ingredient causing your skin to react, talk to a board-certified dermatologist, who can help. You may need a medical test called patch testing to help find out what is causing your irritation.
