Some conditions that can restrict blood (and oxygen) flow and result in a bluish skin color include anemia, pneumonia, chronic infections such as tuberculosis, heart disease, emphysema, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).Ī gray tint to the skin is also an indicator of restricted blood and oxygen flow. This is the most severe form of this type of skin discoloration. You are probably familiar with the description of people “turning blue” from lack of oxygen when choking or when breathing has stopped. A lack of oxygen doesn’t mean that blood flow has stopped, it may be just reduced, causing the skin to change color. The disruption may be to the flow of blood itself, which produces paleness and/or a gray tint to skin tone. Blood carries oxygen around the body, and when this is disrupted, a discoloration may occur. Grayish or blue skin, also called pallor, is a result of a lack of oxygenated blood to the area that is discolored. Hyperpigmentation is the term for skin that is discolored, which for most people involves patches of skin that are either lighter or darker than what is normal for the rest of the body. Skin color is a blend resulting from the skin chromophores red (oxyhemoglobin), blue (deoxygenated hemoglobin), yellow-orange (carotene, an exogenous pigment), and brown (melanin). ![]() The varieties of normal skin color in humans range from people of “no color” (pale, white) to “people of color” (light brown, dark brown, and black). ![]() Pigmentation is the coloring of a person’s skin.
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