# Michael Jackson's skin - scientifically?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [March 1, 2004, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913 "2004-03-01T15:26:00Z")
**Posts on this page:** 6
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@apcross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apcross)
#### Post date: [March 1, 2004, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913/1 "2004-03-01T15:26:00Z")
What’s the deal with Michael Jackson’s skin? Does he actually have vitiligo, causing him to lose his pigmentation? Or is he changing it in some way to make it lighter? I heard that Jermaine wrote a song about Michael’s skin that would suggest it’s the latter. If that’s the case, how would you actually go about changing your skin color? I’m white - could I take a pill that would make me look black?
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### Author:  [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)
#### Post date: [March 1, 2004, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913/2 "2004-03-01T16:11:23Z")
My understanding is that he claims to have vitiligo, which leaves the skin patchy, and that he bleaches his skin to match.
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### Author:  [@apcross](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/apcross)
#### Post date: [March 1, 2004, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913/3 "2004-03-01T17:53:17Z")
> [@Nametag](#):
>
> My understanding is that he claims to have vitiligo, which leaves the skin patchy, and that he bleaches his skin to match.
So how does a dermatologist go about bleaching the skin? Bleaching will remove the pigment underneath?
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### Author:  [@gooti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gooti)
#### Post date: [March 1, 2004, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913/4 "2004-03-01T20:51:49Z")
> [@apcross](#):
>
> So how does a dermatologist go about bleaching the skin? Bleaching will remove the pigment underneath?
Here’s an article on [depigmentation](http://www.nvfi.org/depig.htm) on the National Vitiligo Foundation website.
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### Author:  [@MadScientistMatt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadScientistMatt)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2004, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913/5 "2004-03-02T02:39:07Z")
> [@apcross](#):
>
> I’m white - could I take a pill that would make me look black?
So far, the closest attempt to that (which I’m aware of) has been beta carotene pills. They can turn your skin orange, which really isn’t the right color. I’m sure someone is working on such a pill though; it would probably sell pretty well considering how risky many current popular methods of altering skin color are! Spray-on tans though are supposed to be fairly realistic - at least when done correctly.
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### Author:  [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)
#### Post date: [March 2, 2004, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/michael-jacksons-skin-scientifically/231913/6 "2004-03-02T02:59:10Z")
Don’t forget that several years ago MJ got a rather serious set of burns in a mishap of some sort. This has been suggested as a possible precursor to some of this problems, skin and otherwise.
As to the other question, you may want to read the book [Black Like Me](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0451192036/qid=1078196098/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_1/104-3150461-8305569) by John Howard Griffin. From the \*Publishers Weekly \* review on Amazon:
> [@](#):
>
> In 1959, Griffin headed to New Orleans, darkened his skin and immersed himself in black society, then traveled to several states until he could no longer stand the racism, segregation and degrading living conditions.
I have read the book, and it contained a description of how Griffen accomplished the darkening, but it was a long time ago and I don’t remember.