Just what type of skin do you have? While many people will say oily or dry, others will say fair or dark. There are just so many classifications, right? And you need to know your skin type to get the right foundation, moisturizer, and cleansing products.
Well, your skin color is determined by a scale. This scale is known as the Fitzpatrick skin scale. Here’s all you need to know about it to fully understand it. It’s time to use it to help protect your skin and know everything you need when going out.
What Is the Fitzpatrick Skin Scale?
Let’s start with understanding exactly what the skin scale is. It also commonly referred to as the Fitzpatrick skin typing test and the prototyping scale.
It’s a numerical classification scheme for the coloring of your skin. It gained its name from the man who developed it in 1975, Thomas B. Fitzpatrick. The aim was to estimate how the skin would react to UV light, which is naturally given off by the sun.
However, it does more than using the coloring of the skin (or the eyes) as an estimate on how the UV rays will affect the skin. Well, it does now! Originally, the scale only used eye and skin color to determine the reaction of the skin in the sun, but researchers soon found that this wasn’t accurate. There were other elements that affected reactions.
This led to the full Fitzpatrick scale, which has six categories. This is a much smaller version that the earlier von Luschan scale, which had 36 different categories to work through!
Based on the scale, it’s possible for an individual to work out just how their skin will react in the sun. There are specific hair and eye colors that tend to work with the skin colors to determine the exact type.
It shouldn’t be that surprising to hear that those with darker skin will have high concentrations of melanin. This protects the skin against the UV ray damage naturally. Those on the lower end of the scale will need to wear more sunscreen because the sun will do more damage in a shorter space of time.
However, having a higher skin type isn’t necessarily a good thing. There are downsides to making it harder for the sun to penetrate the skin’s layers!
Influencing the Fitzpatrick Scale
There are three factors that influence the skin types and affect the positioning on the scales. The main element is in the genes. If a person is born to parents who both sit on the lower end of the scale, there are higher chances of that person also having skin coloring on the lower end.
However, this is just one factor. Those who have more sun exposure will find their skin starts to develop more melanin. The skin doesn’t react as harshly in a short period. So, those growing up in hotter countries will have better protection and reactions than those who are on holiday in the same countries.
You can affect where you are on the scale through your tanning habits. Those who have a habit of indoor tanning will find their skin develops extra protection against the UV rays compared to someone who never exposes themselves to the tanning beds or sun at all!
Fitzpatrick and Your Genetic Disposition. When it comes to your genes, there are a few ways that you can determine your positioning on the scale. You need to consider your eye, hair, and natural coloring of your skin. For the skin coloring, you want to look at the areas that aren’t usually exposed to the sun. Work with the stomach, upper legs, or butt for the best idea.
A fourth element is the freckles that you have on any unexposed areas of your skin. This is the part of the body that very rarely (if ever) is exposed to UV rays or tanning beds.
How Your Skin Reacts to the Sun. The next part will look at how your skin reacts within the sun. There are four elements to this.
The first is looking at what happens if you’re in the sun for too long. Do you burn or blister? You’ll also need to determine how quickly your skin turns brown and how deep that tan is.
As the fourth part of the section, you’ll need to consider how your face tans. This usually reacts very differently to the rest of your body because of the extra fragile nature of the skin on your face.
Assessing Your Tanning Habits. There is only one section of this part of the table. You’ll need to think about when you last exposed your body to UV rays (natural and unnatural). Those who live in hard winter climates will likely find their score is low for this unless they regularly hit the tanning beds. Those in all-year hot climates will find they expose their skin regularly.
Once you’ve worked out a score for each of the elements, you will get your Fitzpatrick skin type. You’ll have a score between 0 and 36, setting you within the six separate categories.
It is possible to straddle two different types of skin depending on the time of year. It’s worth doing this test regularly, especially if you are going from a hard winter to a hot summer—you’ll need to protect your skin throughout the summer months.
Understanding the Six Types on the Fitzpatrick Skin Scale
Now that you know how to determine your skin type, it’s time to look at the different types of skin. Here are the six types of the 36 categories from the older scale.
- Type I(scores 0–6) always burns, never tans (pale white; blond or red hair; blue eyes; freckles).
- Type II(scores 7–13) Usually burns, tans minimally (white; fair; blond or red hair; blue, green, or hazel eyes)
- Type III(scores 14–20) Sometimes mild burn, tans uniformly (Cream white; fair with any hair or eye color)
- Type IV(scores 21–27) burns minimally, always tans well (light brown)
- Type V(scores 28–34) very rarely burns, tans very easily (brown)
- Type VI(scores 35–36) never burns, always tans (deeply pigmented dark brown to darkest brown)
We’ll break these types down with the pros and cons and any recommendations from the health professionals.
Skin Type I
You won’t get a tan if you have this skin type, especially without burning first. Around 5% of people are in this category in the United States alone, but this is more common in some other Northern hemisphere countries where the sun is lacking throughout the year. Scotland is one of the worst locations for this skin type.
You will need to make sure you look after your skin and avoid burning. When you do burn, you will likely blister and peel deep within the layers. This is extremely dangerous as you get right into the deeper cells. Use a sunscreen with at least SPF 50. As your sun gets used to some sun (especially if you move countries), you may find that your skin changes into a different category.
If you want to tan, then you’ll need to go for something cosmetic. Fake tan is much healthier and will give you an even coloring when you apply it properly. This fake tan doesn’t give you a base tan to get started.
You could try some indoor tanning beds, but keep exposure to a minimum. The good news is you can soak in a lot of vitamin D due to the paler complexion.
Skin Type II
The second coloring is one of the most popular in the likes of the United States, Canada, and Britain. People with this skin coloring will develop a tan, but the skin is still a risk of burning. With good protection, it is possible to skip the burning part.
You will need to avoid too much exposure to the sun. Opt for a good sunscreen to use throughout the day and keep applying it regularly. Over exposure will not give you a deeper tan!
If you want to get your skin prepared for a vacation, opt for a tanning bed. The people who work there will be able to help you with your goals based on your skin type. This type of exposure will also help you get plenty of vitamin D throughout the year.
Due to the lack of melanin in the skin, this is one of the best skin types for soaking in all the vitamin D from the UV rays! There is one positive to take from this skin type.
Skin Type III
The third type of skin coloring on the list will find that their skin burns at times, but tanning is much more likely. It all depends on the amount of sunscreen applied and the exposure to the sun. You won’t usually need longer than 10 minutes on a sun bed regularly for an overall tan to help get you ready for the summer.
Most of the time, your skin won’t have a problem in absorbing the UV rays from the sun or your tanning bed. The problem comes from the amount of exposure you get throughout the year.
You can still use some fake tan to help get an even layer across your body. A tinted moisturizer is also good for your face.
Skin Type IV
This is often considered the best type of skin to have. You get the balance of little burning risk with some good UV absorption. However, some sun rays in Northern hemisphere countries may just be too low to help get the most. You’ll want to consider indoor tanning beds to help.
While there is still a risk of overexposure, those with Skin Type IV rarely burn. They tan easily and deeply, giving them an even coloring across their body. There’s a golden glow to this type of skin. There’s usually no need for any fake tan. In fact, applying some fake tan can make your skin look orange.
Skin Type V
Rather than getting a golden coloring, you’ll end up with a brownish coloring to your skin when tanning. Your skin may be naturally browner. Tanning is extremely easy, and you’ll rarely suffer from sunburn.
That doesn’t mean your overexposure risk is nil. Anyone is at risk of developing skin cancer, but the melanin in those with Skin Type V is at a relatively high level. This melanin causes a problem. You don’t get the UV absorption, which means not as much in the way of vitamin D getting through into your body. You will need to find other ways to keep on top of this vitamin.
You may still want to use sun beds if you’ve gone a few months without sun exposure. Try just 15-20 minutes on the beds.
Skin Type VI
The final skin type is the darkest. Most people will have black or very dark brown skin. That skin coloring gets darker the more they’re exposed to sunlight.
Burning is extremely uncommon, and the skin has a natural protective layer against some UV damage. Of course, this does mean that you are at a higher risk of vitamin D deficiency. Even if you use sun beds, you’ll find it difficult to get the right levels of vitamin D. You’ll want to discuss your options with your doctor.
The Fitzpatrick Scale and Emojis
You’ve likely heard that emojis now come in a variety of skin tones. Did you know that the Fitzpatrick scale has been used to help set the emoji skin colors? There are now 83 different human emojis across the different devices. They all have a variety of colors to suit your own when you share something with friends.
By understanding the Fitzpatrick scale and what the different types of colorings mean, you can protect your skin from harmful UV rays. Just because your skin is dark doesn’t mean you have no negatives when it comes to the sun, vitamin D, and damage.