What to do if the areola is dark? Differentiate between physiology and pathology

There are physiological and pathological reasons for the darkening of the areola. The physiological reason is that the color of a woman's areola will become darker after she becomes pregnant. The pathological reason requires attention. At this time, the darkening of the areola will also be accompanied by severe itching, which is likely to be a breast disease and should be checked in time.

1. Physiological changes

1. After a woman becomes pregnant, the color of her nipples and areolas may deepen from early pregnancy, gradually changing from light red to dark brown. This change is mainly due to the increase of estrogen and progesterone in the body after pregnancy, which is a normal physiological change.

2. For some women (mostly between 30 and 45 years old), even when they are not pregnant, the color of their nipples and areolas gradually deepens from pink-brown to dark brown. A breast examination may not reveal any lesions, but this color change indicates that the woman has a "transient" increase in estrogen in her body. Perhaps after a period of time, due to self-regulation, the estrogen level returns to normal, and the color of the nipples and areola also returns to normal. This is still a normal physiological change.

2. Pathological changes

1. The color of the nipples and areolas deepens, accompanied by severe itching around the nipples and areolas. During breast examination, hyperplastic lesions or cystic hyperplastic lesions may be found in both or one breast. The darkening of the color of the nipple and areola indicates an increase in the level of estrogen in the body. It is consistent with the law of disease occurrence for the breast, which is a target organ.

2. The color of the nipple and areola simply deepens to dark brown or black brown. Even small nodules may be found around the areola glands, forming protrusions. At this time, there is no lesion when examining the breasts. One should consider whether the patient has a more serious liver disease. This is because liver disease causes decreased liver function, and estrogen cannot be normally broken down in the liver, causing the nipples and areolas to darken in color, which is exactly the same as the "spider nevi" and "cinnabar palms" that appear in men with severe liver disease. 3. When a woman's ovaries suffer from certain benign tumors, the amount of estrogen secreted by the ovaries increases, which can cause the color of the nipples and areola to darken, and many small nodules may appear around the areola glands. Such patients should see a gynecologist as soon as possible to find out the cause and receive timely treatment.