Although color does not have an absolute meaning, black is often associated with negative things.
In art and literature, black is often used to enhance the effects of death and terror.
What might it mean when our body is black?
1. Darkened lips
The shade of lip color mainly depends on the thickness of the skin and the number of blood vessels, and the lip color varies from person to person.
Usually, the lip color of a healthy person should be pale red.
If your lips are persistently dark or dark, there are three health concerns you may want to be aware of:
1. Digestive problems
If the digestive system is not functioning properly for a long time and cannot effectively eliminate metabolic wastes, toxins may reach the lips with blood circulation, resulting in darker lip color.
For example, indigestion or long-term constipation is often accompanied by symptoms such as loss of appetite.
Some people with small bowel polyps develop dark spots on their lower lip. If purple-black or pure black spots appear on the lips, this may be a sign of a small bowel polyp.
2. Cardiovascular problems
Insufficient blood supply to the heart or obstruction of blood circulation can lead to a lack of oxygen in the body, and the oxygen saturation around the lips decreases, which may darken the lips.
For example, conditions such as hemangiomas, heart disease, or myocarditis can cause this.
3. Liver problems
The liver is the body's metabolic center and main detoxification organ. Impaired liver function can lead to hormone imbalances and metabolic abnormalities, which allow melanin to accumulate in the body, causing a darkening of the lip color.
In particular, patients with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis may have dull and dark faces, and melanin pigmentation may also appear around the eyes and lips, creating a so-called "liver disease face".
Second, the neck is dark
Some people always look dark on the back and sides of their necks that can't be removed even with washing, which may not be a tan, but a sign of a disease.
This condition is known as acanthosis nigricans and is a skin condition caused by hyperpigmentation. Its color may change from light brown to black, and the skin may exhibit the following characteristics:
Although acanthosis nigricans itself is benign and mainly affects the appearance and does not cause other harm, its appearance usually means that there may be abnormalities in the body's endocrine and metabolism.
1. Diabetes
In the early stages of diabetes, fasting blood sugar levels may be higher than normal, even if the diagnostic criteria for diabetes are not met.
Insulin resistance impedes the normal binding of insulin to its receptors, and excess insulin interacts with insulin-like growth factor-1 receptors in peripheral tissues (eg, skeletal muscle, fat, liver) to promote the proliferation of keratinocytes and fibroblasts in the skin.
Without timely intervention, the risk of diabetes is greatly increased, and the likelihood of developing acanthosis nigricans is also increased.
2. Polycystic ovary syndrome
The main symptoms of PCOS include irregular menstruation and hyperandrogenism, but because it is essentially a collection of metabolic problems, many patients also have problems with obesity and insulin resistance.
Clinical observation shows that up to one-third of patients with PCOS also have acanthosis nigricans.
3. Visceral tumors
If the black skin folds are widespread and accompanied by a strong itching sensation, this may be a sign of malignant acanthosis nigricans.
Malignant acanthosis nigricans is usually caused by visceral tumors and is about 50% associated with gastric cancer, with other possible associated diseases including bile duct cancer, pancreatic cancer, rectal cancer, and ovarian cancer. Middle-aged and older people and people with low body weight need to pay special attention to this symptom.
3. Black lines on fingernails
The black lines on the nails are usually onychomycular nevi formed by an increase in intraungual pigment cells, which can appear on any nail but are especially common on the thumb, index finger, and first toe.
The width of the nail nevus is generally not more than 3 mm, the edges are neat, the pigment is evenly distributed, and the widening rate is slow.
It is important to note that if the black lines on the nails suddenly widen by more than 3 mm, or if there are multiple patchy bands of different colors, or if the skin at the base of the nails darkens, these can be signs of melanoma.
The pigment cells under the nails are usually inactive, but inflammation can activate these cells, resulting in gray or dark gray lines on the nails. Daily activities, such as washing clothes or dishes, can also cause this phenomenon.
Female nail nevi are usually darker in color, while lines caused by inflammation are lighter. If black lines appear on multiple nails at the same time, a female nail nevus is less likely.
Fourth, black stool
The normal color of the stool should be yellow or yellowish-brown, which is due to the bilirubin action in the bile. Eating animal offal, blood products, or taking iron supplements may temporarily darken the stool.
If food and drug factors are ruled out, persistent or intermittent darkening of the stool is usually a sign of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, which may involve the esophagus, stomach, or duodenum.
Staying in the intestine for too long causes the destruction of red blood cells, and hemoglobin combines with sulfide to form black ferric sulfide, which turns the stool black.
Of particular concern are gastrointestinal cancers:
Stomach cancer may present with black stools, persistent stomach pain, and hematemesis.
Colorectal cancer may present with black stools and persistent constipation.
These symptoms require prompt medical examination.