Human Skin has Different Colors

Why does the human skin have different colors?

            Have you noticed that people form different countries and race have different skin colors? For example, people in the northern Europe have white skin whereas those in the western Africa have black skin. People in the Southeast Asia have yellowish skin. Do you know the reason for the variation in this skin color?

Color of human skin depends on the pigments present in the body

            The color of the human skin depends mainly on three pigments or coloring materials found in the body. The first of these is called melanin which is a brown substance. If concentrated, it appears black. The second is called carotene which is a yellow substance. And the third is called hemoglobin which is the red pigment of the blood. In the absence of these pigments the color of the skin will be creamy white. The mixture of these three in different proportions produces the different colors of the skin. A man having more melanin will have dark complexion while the man having more of carotene will have yellowish skin. Melanin and carotene are found in the deep epidermis in all skin types.

            The tissues of the body produce more melanin when exposed to the ultraviolet rays in sunlight. That is why the color of the skin of the people who live in tropical regions is very dark. When we work in the sunlight continuously for days, our skin becomes dark. People living in the colder countries have white skin, because their skin contains smaller quantities of melanin. The deficiency of these pigments in the body produces white spots on the body. This disorder is called leucoderma.

            The color of the skin depends partly on the amount of blood circulating through the dermis and the texture of the dermis. Since the texture varies considerably in different people, the light that falls on the skin is not always reflected in the same way. This is why the color of a person’s skin varies from place to place.

How Does a Chameleon Change its Color?

            We observe that chameleon in the garden. It is an amazing kind of lizard, which often changes its color to merge with its surroundings and escape notice. This ability to change color is known as camouflaging.

Chameleons change their color because of the color-containing cells

            But how does a chameleon change its color? It can do so because of the color containing cells beneath its skin.

            Although the upper layer of chameleon’s skin is transparent, the layer just beneath it has cells containing yellow, black and red pigments. These pigments are granular in structure and the granules can easily move for one point to another in its body. When these cells increases at one point turning the color of the skin into black. And when they get scattered throughout the body, different colors are produced.

            This implies that the contraction and expansion of its cells are responsible for changes in the color of its skin. But why do these cells contract or expand? There are three reasons for this-

1. Emotions of the chameleon play a role in changing its color. When a chameleon gets enraged or frightened, it turns black in color. When it is excited, yellow spots appear on its skin making it turn yellow.

2. Light also affects chameleon’s color. When exposed to sunlight, its cells turn black due to the heat of the sun.

3. Heat is also a reason for it to change color. Then it is exposed to hot and dark surroundings, its color turns green but at cooler temperature in the dark its skin turns light yellow.

            The ability to change its color provides the chameleon with many advantages, like protection from enemies and catching of its prey for food. Another interesting feature of a chameleon is that it can move one eye independently of the other. One eye can be looking forward while the other looks behind. This enables it to look at two things at a time.