Have you ever found yourself surfing google to find out about the dark, discoloured patches on your skin? If yes then chances are you have found out that you have melasma. Now don’t you worry at all as this is a very common skin problem that causes blotchy patches of darker colour that commonly appear on your cheeks, forehead, nose, above the upper lip and sometimes on the chin. Other parts of the body that gets exposed to sun like forearms and neck can also be affected.

Melasma is a kind of facial pigmentation or rather the “mask of pregnancy” in pregnant women. This condition is also known as chloasma which literally means green skin. As this is not true the term melasma (brown skin) is usually used. Men can chill out as only 10% of them get it. This is more common in women than men although it is seen in people who tan well or have naturally brown skin. In majority of them it starts appearing in their mid-twenties or forties.