Skin Can't Handle Harsh Topicals? Research Says Aloe Vera Is A+ For Dark Spots

When it comes to treating dark spots, the classics tend to be the best. Dermatologist-favorite ingredients, such as AHAs, vitamin C, and retinol, can help brighten skin and fade pigmentation concerns fairly effectively.

However, it must be noted that these two ingredients can be hard to tolerate. Many folks find them to be irritating on the skin and struggle to use them consistently. This is especially true of modern formulations, which tend to be fairly potent. 

So if you have sensitive skin, it can be a struggle to find products that help fade dark spots—without triggering more inflammation and irritation (which can, by the way, lead to dark spots worsening down the line).

However, there's another great classic ingredient that's often missing from the conversation that can not only help address age spots but is hydrating and anti-inflammatory.

It's also an excellent dark spot corrector. This comes down to one of the compounds in the juice, aloesin. Aloesin has brightening capabilities that can help speed up this fading process. In one study, when aloe was applied to skin four times per day for two weeks, aloesin was shown to effectively fade post-acne hyperpigmentation1.

Another report showed that topical application of aloesin can directly inhibit hyperpigmented skin from producing more melanin—hyperpigmentation simply means excess melanin production in your skin, so keeping the pigment-producing cells from becoming overactive is key. 

Aloe can also act as a preventive tool, due to its anti-inflammatory properties. Dark spots are often the result of your skin cells producing more pigment as a reaction to damage in the skin.

Many of the ingredients recommended for skin brightening are hard for many folks to tolerate. AHAs, vitamin C, and retinol all are known skin irritants, especially when used at too high a concentration.