How to Lighten Underarm Skin

Firstly, if you are worried about dark skin pigmentation in your armpit area, you should know that it is mostly completely natural. This is especially the case if you have naturally dark skin. The discoloration can be from heat, clothes, shaving and even simply the inevitable action of time on our bodies as we age.

There are medical reasons behind this condition. One common such condition is acanthosis nigricans. It is a hyperpigmentation of the skin and is fairly common, but not in acute cases. It is more to do with genetics or as a symptom of a separate condition, but lifestyle can play a part, mainly in terms of diet.

This is because acanthosis nigricans is affected by insulin levels in the body. If someone eats too much, the body can overproduce insulin. This can not only lead to acanthosis nigricans, but diabetes and other concerning health risks. If you want to lighten underarm skin, but think you have have a condition like this, a trip to the doctor is in order. If diabetes or cancer are risks, then treatment for these should begin. Otherwise lifestyle changes are in order.

If the cause is acquired rather than genetic, then we have these tips to help you out. Most are natural and can be used together with other treatments to help lighten skin.

Use lemon

Thanks to bleaching and astringent effects, lemon is one of the best solutions for underarm whitening. Squeeze a lemon and apply its juice daily before showering, as well as combating odor, lemon juice will also help reduce melanin and remove dead cells from your armpits. The reason for lemon working to lighten your underarms is due to its bleaching abilities.

Ingredients

• Half a lemon
• 10 gr baking soda
• 1 tsp honey

Procedure

Mix all the ingredients together and apply in circular movements on your underarms. Leave for ten minutes and rinse with water. Make sure you add honey to the recipe, as using lemon to whiten underarms can cause photodermatitis due to the acids found in this juice. If you do use lemon on its own, never leave it on for longer than 5 - 15 minutes as its acidity can cause damage to the skin.

Use orange

Just like lemons, orange is also an excellent alternative to whiten dark skin pigmentation underarms. Like lemons, oranges have vitamin C which is great for your skin. It is a natural exfoliant which means it removes old skin cells, one common cause for discoloration. Once these dead skin cells are removed, the vitamin C doesn't stop there.

Vitamin C can help stimulate regrowth of skin cells and collagen. These will help build your skin back to strength as well as provide a remedy to lighten its tone. Finally, vitamin C is also thought to reduce melanin production. Melanin is the pigment which causes our skin to darken in the sun, but overproduction of melanin can lead to darkened skin under your arms.

Ingredients

• 1 glass water
• 1 Orange peel

Procedure

You just have to add some water to the orange peel and make a paste and rub it on your armpits. Orange peel effectively helps to remove the dark color of the area. Although not as acidic as lemon juice, orange juice shouldn't be left on the skin for prolonged periods of time either. Depending on the type of juice, it can also tint your skin a little which is counter-productive when you want to lighten underarm skin.

Use potato

As well as acting as an astringent to reduce inflammation, potato acts as an underarm lightener. Potatoes are mildly acidic, but not as much as lemon juice or other citrus fruit. If you apply it and leave it on your skin, it won't do much damage. Like any dirt on your skin, however, you should wash if off.

Ingredients

• 1/2 potato

Procedure

You can simply cut a potato in half and rub the exposed part on your dark skin under the arms. If you want more exposure, you can also grated the potato as use this to rub on your skin. Leave it on for 15 minutes before washing off with a gently exfoliant. Perform this action every day for two weeks and see positive effects.

Take a look at our article on how to whiten underarms with potato for more information or try using cucumber for the same technique.

Saffron and milk

A very effective home remedy to lighten underarm skin is mixed saffron with two tablespoons of cream or milk. An ancient method, it was rumoured that drinking a mixture of saffron and milk during pregnancy would cause the baby to be born fair. While this isn't exactly rue, it will work to lighten dark underarms. Besides this, it is also good at eliminating bacteria and odor. Saffron is one of the most expensive spices, so this may not be an everyday remedy for lightening dark spots underarms.

Ingredients

• 1 tsp saffron
• 2 tbsp cream or milk

Procedure

This recipe is really simple. Just mix the saffron and milk/cream together until well combined. Spread it on the armpits before bed and let it stand overnight. Rinse with lukewarm water.

Sandalwood and rosewater

If you create a paste of sandalwood cream with rosewater you get an excellent remedy to lightening your armpit skin. The refreshing properties of this water and sandalwood bleach will help your skin regain its normal color.

Ingredients

• 4 tbsp rosewater
• 2 tbsp sandalwood powder

Procedure

Mix both ingredients well until you get an even paste and use daily and applied to the area and let sit for 10 minutes. You could add some fuller's earth too if you want to multiply the lightening properties.

Baking soda

In these times the benefits of baking soda serve for everything, and among them is the property of skin lightening.

Ingredients

• 10 grams baking soda
• lemon juice from half a lemon

Procedure

Put it directly on the area of your armpits with lemon juice, wait until the mixture stands for few minutes and then wash as usual. It is one of the most effective remedies! Take a look at other recipes to whiten the underarms with baking soda here.

Hydrogen peroxide

A bleach excellence is hydrogen peroxide for either removing stains on clothing or skin lightening under the arms.

Ingredients

• Hydrogen peroxide
• Cotton ball

Procedure

Moisten a cotton ball with hydrogen peroxide for topical use and apply it to the area of your underarms, letting the liquid be absorbed and then wash it as usual. Like the lemon juice and baking power make your blemishes disappear quickly. Like lemon juice it is also dangerous to be left on the skin for too long, so do not exceed a 15 minute exposure.

Activated charcoal

While it might seem counterproductive, charcoal can actually be used to lighten skin. However, you can't just grab a piece of charcoal from a cold barbecue and rub it under your arms. It needs to be activated charcoal. This is a substance which has many properties across different industries, but can be great for skin as a detoxifying agent. If this is what is causing your darkened underarm skin, then it could be a great option for you.

Ingredients

• Activated charcoal capsule
• 1 tablespoon of honey

Mix the charcoal honey together in equal parts. Wash your underarms as normal and rub the activated charcoal mixture onto them. Leave for 15 minutes and wash off.

Read our article to know more about how to whiten underarms with charcoal.

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