Skin Phototype is a group of physical characteristics that determine tanning capacity (skin color, eyes, and hair). Understanding your skin phototype is crucial to for many reasons; one of them is because some products are specifically designed to work on certain phototypes; also, when it comes to aesthetic treatments, some lasers and IPL cannot work on higher phototypes unless they are specially made for them. You can also see it as the capacity of adaptation to the sun. The less adaptation capacity, the less resistance to the sun. The Fitzpatrick scale is the one used to determine your skin phototype.
Skin Phototype (SP)
Skin Phototype I
- Pale White skin with freckles
- Blue or green eyes
- Blond or red hair
- Low side effects with laser treatments
- Example: Redhead with freckles
Tanning ability: sunburn occurs fast, with redness and flaking. This skin cannot tan because of high reaction to the sun.
Skin Phototype II
- Light skin
- Blue, green, or Hazel eyes
- Blond or red hair
- Reacts wells to laser treatments
- Example: northern Asian, fair-skinned
Tanning ability: sunburn can happen quickly, showing redness with flaking. This skin can present a light pigmentation and reacts against the sun.
SP III
- Light Brown skin
- Hazer or Brown eyes
- Dark blond or light brown hair
- Reacts well to laser treatment
- Example: darker Caucasians
Tanning ability: Mild pigmentation and redness. High reaction against the sun.
SP IV
- Moderate Brown skin
- No freckles
- Dark Brown eyes
- Dark Brown or black hair
- Skin might react to laser
- Example: Mediterraneans, Latins
Tanning ability: Always shows pigmentation, mild redness, mild reaction to sun exposure.
SP V
- No freckles
- Dark hair and eyes
- Very sensitive to laser
- Example: Hispanic and Africans
Tanning ability: rarely have sunburns, barely shows redness, high chances of high pigmentation
SP VI
- No freckles
- Dark and curly hair
- Dark eyes
- Extremely sensitive to laser
- Example: darker Africans
Tanning ability: It never tans but can present sunburns, high chances of pigmentation
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