Well, Michael Jackson claims he had a skin condition called vitiligo: Vitiligo (vit-ill-EYE-go) is a pigmentation disorder in which melanocytes (the cells that make pigment) in the skin, the mucous membranes (tissues that line the inside of the mouth and nose and genital and rectal areas), and the retina (inner layer of the eyeball) are destroyed. As a result, white patches of skin appear on different parts of the body. The hair that grows in areas affected by vitiligo usually turns white. For more info on vitiligo see: http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/vitiligo/vitiligo.htm Heres an exerpt from wikipedia: Although Jackson's skin color was a medium-brown color for the entire duration of his youth, his skin has lightened gradually since 1982, becoming light tan around 1987-1991, and today is a white color although it is not clear how much makeup affects its appearance. Jackson has attributed his changing skin color to vitiligo,[3] a skin condition in which the body develops antibodies against its own melanin, a body pigment, resulting in light patches and an eventual loss of all pigment. During court depositions in 1994, both Jackson's dermatologist Dr. Arnold Klein and his nurse (Deborah Rowe, whom Jackson later married) claimed that following a biopsy of his scalp in 1984, Jackson was diagnosed with lupus and vitiligo. As a result of this disorder, Jackson is said to use make-up to cover-up the imperfections in his skin and has denied numerous reports that he bleaches his skin. He has also been told by his dermatologist to avoid any exposure to the sun. Ever since then, Jackson has regularly worn long-sleeved shirts and trousers under an umbrella while in public to hide from the sun. See here for some interesting(disturbing) reading on the topic: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physical_appearance_of_Michael_Jackson

by doing lots of skin bleaching.

i think he had it done and payed big bucks for it around the time he got his nose done and uses alot of make up... Vitiligo he is full of it and a fruitcake at that let's face it the man hated being black for whatever reason ... he bleached his skin and got numerous nose jobs why couldnt he be happy with what he was talk about self image issues FREAK>>>>>

He looked in his mirror?

Bleach

he bleached it man .........lots of times and he must have had a lot of nose jobs he must have some self confident issues or maybe some bad childhood memories iether way he needs therapy one things for sure hes a ......FREAK

he bleached himself nd his wiener.

LOL @ the simple "he bleached himself". Nothing in life can be explained in such a trivial simple manner. Did any you take a second to research what exactly skin bleaching is? What terrible, immature answers. You want a real answer? Heres a real response as apposed to "he bleached him self and his weener". (And I'd love to see any one of you who gave those answers try and dispute this with your simple logic). I hope people who really want to know about vitiligo appreciate this, its a lot of typing for me to do. lol My sources: http://the-medical-dictionary.com/vitiligo.htm http://www.1uphealth.com/medical/disease/skin-hair-nail-disease/vitiligo-8.html http://health.allrefer.com/health/vitiligo-treatment.html http://www.aocd.org/skin/dermatologic_diseases/vitiligo.html http://www.avrf.org/PAGES-LEVEL2/vitiligo_defined.html http://www.nvfi.org/vitiligo.htm http://www.vitiligosupport.com/faq.cfm Vitiligo is a relatively common skin disorder, in which white spots or patches appear on the skin. These spots are caused by destruction or weakening of the pigment cells in those areas, resulting in the pigment being destroyed or no longer produced. In most cases, vitiligo is believed to be an autoimmune-related disorder. Although researchers are not exactly sure what causes the autoimmune response, more is being learned every year. In vitiligo, only the color of the skin is affected. The texture and other skin qualities remain normal. What are the symptoms of Vitiligo? People who develop vitiligo usually first notice white patches or spots (depigmentation) on their skin. The skin remains of normal texture, and there is usually no itching or other symptoms. These patches are more obvious in sun-exposed areas, including the hands, feet, arms, legs, face, and lips. Other common areas for white patches to appear are the armpits and groin and around the mouth, eyes, nostrils, navel, and genitals. Vitiligo generally appears in one of three patterns. In one pattern (focal pattern), the depigmentation is limited to one or only a few areas. Some people develop depigmented patches on only one side of their bodies (segmental vitiligo). But for most people who have vitiligo, depigmentation occurs on different parts of the body (generalized vitiligo), often similar on each side of the body. In addition to white patches on the skin, some people with vitiligo may experience white hair growing in on the scalp, eyelashes, eyebrows, and beard. In extremely rare cases, vitiligo can affect eye color or the pigment of the retina. Does genetics play a role? Most people with vitiligo have neither parents, nor children, nor siblings with vitiligo. Many have no other relatives with vitiligo. Vitiligo does appear to be hereditary, that is, it can run in families. Children whose parents have the disorder are more likely to develop vitiligo. There is no question about that. However, most children will not get vitiligo even if a parent has it, and most people with vitiligo do not have a family history of the disorder. So the chances of your child developing vitiligo appear to be very small. Nevertheless, there are sufficient numbers of families where vitiligo does appear among siblings, parents and children, such that we can assume a genetic factor. How does Vitiligo Develop? The beginning of Vitiligo and the severity of pigment loss differs with each patient. Light skinned people usually notice the pigment loss during the summer as the contrast between the vitiliginous skin and the suntanned skin becomes distinct. People with dark skin may observe the onset of Vitiligo at any time. Individuals who have severe cases will lose pigment over their entire body surface. There is no way to predict how much pigment an individual will lose, Illness and stress can result in more pigment loss. The degree of pigment loss can also vary within each Vitiligo patch, and a border of abnormally dark skin may encircle a patch of depigmented skin. Vitiligo frequently begins with a rapid loss of pigment which may be followed by a lengthy period when the skin color does not change. Later, the pigment loss may resume — perhaps after the individual has suffered physical trauma or stress. The loss of color may continue until, for unknown reasons, the process stops. Cycles of pigment loss, followed by periods of stability may continue indefinitely. It is rare for a patient with Vitiligo to repigment or regain skin color spontaneously. Most patients who say that they no longer have Vitiligo may actually have become depigmented and are no longer bothered by contrasting skin color. While such patients appear to be “cured”, they really are not. People who have Vitiligo all over their bodies do not look like albinos because the color of their hair may not change — or it can be dyed — and eye color does not change. Emotional Impact Most individuals with Vitiligo are upset because of the uneven skin color. It is difficult for those who do not have Vitiligo to appreciate the significance of this problem to the victim. Depigmentation Therapy If a person has Vitiligo over more than half of the exposed areas of the body, he or she is not a candidate for repigmentation. Rather, such a person may want to try depigmentation of the remaining pigmented skin. The drug for depigmentation is monobenzylether of hydroquinone. Many patients with Vitiligo are at first apprehensive about the idea of depigmentation and reluctant to go ahead. However, patients who achieve complete depigmentation are usually satisfied with the end results. Some people become allergic to the medication and must discontinue therapy. This therapy takes about a year to complete. The pigment removal is permanent. Sensitivity to the sun Patches of vitiligo skin have no natural protection against the sun’s rays. This is because vitiligo skin is white as the melanocytes which produce melanin (skin pigment) are not active. The effect of the sun is normally to increase melanin production and to turn the skin brown; this is a protective mechanism to prevent the skin from being damaged by burning. Therefore, the most important reason for protecting your skin is to prevent sunburn. Not only is this painful, but damage to the skin, including sunburn, can stimulate the vitiligo to spread in some people. As vitiligo skin is particularly vulnerable to sunlight and needs protection, some brands of sunblock are classified by the NHS (The British National Health Service) as borderline substances which means they can be obtained on prescription from your doctor. Michael says he was first diagnosed at the earliest, during the time he released his ‘Off the Wall’ album. We can assume that maybe it started before he actually released the album in stores, which was in the mid 70s. Treatments were still being developed and the awareness of the disease was not there. So naturally, the only solution for Michael then was to cover it up using cosmetics. I’ve heard people ask ‘So why didn’t he try to regain his color’ making it seem as if he was desperate to just depigment his skin of its natural color. Michael covered it with darker makeup I’m sure, for as long as he could. If you look at pictures of Michael Jackson through the years circa 1980, you will see that his face is obviously covered with cosmetics. The unevenness of it is there. So you can see that when it did start, he did try concealing it, obviously no one knew about it until he was visibly a shade lighter. http://youtube.com/watch?v=_s0e2YPTHIU http://youtube.com/watch?v=isNCZ0a5Lks http://floacist.wordpress.com/2007/07/29/vitiligo-photos-michael-jackson-andor-lupus-2/ http://floacist.wordpress.com/2007/06/10/vitiligo-photos-michael-jackson/ Example of a vitiligo patient going through therapy: http://youtube.com/watch?v=b4FIw9kG1PM

He turned white when he got caught being a pediphile.

I think he bleached his skin.

With lots of skin-bleaching chemicals and/or cosmetic surgery, regardless of what he says about having vitiligo. Plus some hair weaving. Remember. . .only in America can a poor, young, talented balck boy grow up to become a rich, talented white woman.

ate too much hogg.

I'm sure it was done chemically...and surgically.

Bleach.=)

man, aint michael jackson even know why he turned to a white women...its just sience stuf or somethen

I think he just saw his dog-ugly face in the mirror one day and turned so white, he never recovered. :p JK

He has a condition called "Vitilago"(sp?) it starts by bleaching spots onto the skin. It is rumored that after the condition started covering his face, he began using "porcelain cream" to even it out, making him look all white. It has also been said that he had skin bleaching to blend the spots in. For the most part though, he is just a victim of an unfortunate condition.

You all know what....Michael Jackson is a cool person.Just ask yourself how in the world did we learn how to dance?Because we all learn it from one guy its Michael himself it doesn't matter just because he sleeps with little kids and how he used to be black and now he's white you all should be ashame of yourself talking about Michael like that.

he painted himslef with white paint...duh every1 knows that lol

At the end of the day who cares.. he's a ledgend in his own right, for his pure talent, not for the way he looks!!

he saw a ghost

I think because of a skin condition called vitiligo. "Vitiligo (pronounced /ˌvɪtəˈlaɪgoʊ/) or leukoderma is a chronic skin condition that causes loss of pigment, resulting in irregular pale patches of skin." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitiligo

Clorox 2 for Colors!

He has a skin condition called Vitiligo. It is a skin condition that affects the pigment of one's skin, causing it to turn real white. He may of had his skin bleached later due to the huge skin pigmentation loss, causing patch marks.

He has a skin disease called vitiligo which makes you loose the pigment in your skin thus causing white splotches.

skin bleaching.

too much time in the sun.

he turned white because he wished so hard to be white that he developed a skin disorder that made him proud and he added to it by using skin bleach and plastic surgery to make the rest of his features also look white.

He bleached his skin.

Whore-moans. :)

dangling babies?

i think personally that michael jackson turned white because well...he fell in bleach...got addicted to the fact he turned white...hmmm but no he just has to go like lil boys

self loathing

He had a disease and had to get bleached then thought the bleach would disguise him and went after little boys:)

he stuck it on

Supposedly he has a disease that removes pigmentation from the skin and makes it splotchy.

plastic surgery

by neglecting himself.

What is Vitiligo? Vitiligo is a relatively common skin disorder, in which white spots or patches appear on the skin. These spots are caused by destruction or weakening of the pigment cells in those areas, resulting in the pigment being destroyed or no longer produced. In most cases, vitiligo is believed to be an autoimmune-related disorder. Although researchers are not exactly sure what causes the autoimmune response, more is being learned every year. In vitiligo, only the color of the skin is affected. The texture and other skin qualities remain normal. What are the symptoms of Vitiligo? People who develop vitiligo usually first notice white patches or spots (depigmentation) on their skin. The skin remains of normal texture, and there is usually no itching or other symptoms. These patches are more obvious in sun-exposed areas, including the hands, feet, arms, legs, face, and lips. Other common areas for white patches to appear are the armpits and groin and around the mouth, eyes, nostrils, navel, and genitals. Vitiligo generally appears in one of three patterns. In one pattern (focal pattern), the depigmentation is limited to one or only a few areas. Some people develop depigmented patches on only one side of their bodies (segmental vitiligo). But for most people who have vitiligo, depigmentation occurs on different parts of the body (generalized vitiligo), often similar on each side of the body. In addition to white patches on the skin, some people with vitiligo may experience white hair growing in on the scalp, eyelashes, eyebrows, and beard. In extremely rare cases, vitiligo can affect eye color or the pigment of the retina. Does genetics play a role? Most people with vitiligo have neither parents, nor children, nor siblings with vitiligo. Many have no other relatives with vitiligo. Vitiligo does appear to be hereditary, that is, it can run in families. Children whose parents have the disorder are more likely to develop vitiligo. There is no question about that. However, most children will not get vitiligo even if a parent has it, and most people with vitiligo do not have a family history of the disorder. So the chances of your child developing vitiligo appear to be very small. Nevertheless, there are sufficient numbers of families where vitiligo does appear among siblings, parents and children, such that we can assume a genetic factor. How does Vitiligo Develop? The beginning of Vitiligo and the severity of pigment loss differs with each patient. Light skinned people usually notice the pigment loss during the summer as the contrast between the vitiliginous skin and the suntanned skin becomes distinct. People with dark skin may observe the onset of Vitiligo at any time. Individuals who have severe cases will lose pigment over their entire body surface. There is no way to predict how much pigment an individual will lose, Illness and stress can result in more pigment loss. The degree of pigment loss can also vary within each Vitiligo patch, and a border of abnormally dark skin may encircle a patch of depigmented skin. Vitiligo frequently begins with a rapid loss of pigment which may be followed by a lengthy period when the skin color does not change. Later, the pigment loss may resume — perhaps after the individual has suffered physical trauma or stress. The loss of color may continue until, for unknown reasons, the process stops. Cycles of pigment loss, followed by periods of stability may continue indefinitely. It is rare for a patient with Vitiligo to repigment or regain skin color spontaneously. Most patients who say that they no longer have Vitiligo may actually have become depigmented and are no longer bothered by contrasting skin color. While such patients appear to be “cured”, they really are not. People who have Vitiligo all over their bodies do not look like albinos because the color of their hair may not change — or it can be dyed — and eye color does not change. Emotional Impact Most individuals with Vitiligo are upset because of the uneven skin color. It is difficult for those who do not have Vitiligo to appreciate the significance of this problem to the victim. Depigmentation Therapy If a person has Vitiligo over more than half of the exposed areas of the body, he or she is not a candidate for repigmentation. Rather, such a person may want to try depigmentation of the remaining pigmented skin. The drug for depigmentation is monobenzylether of hydroquinone. Many patients with Vitiligo are at first apprehensive about the idea of depigmentation and reluctant to go ahead. However, patients who achieve complete depigmentation are usually satisfied with the end results. Some people become allergic to the medication and must discontinue therapy. This therapy takes about a year to complete. The pigment removal is permanent. Sensitivity to the sun Patches of vitiligo skin have no natural protection against the sun’s rays. This is because vitiligo skin is white as the melanocytes which produce melanin (skin pigment) are not active. The effect of the sun is normally to increase melanin production and to turn the skin brown; this is a protective mechanism to prevent the skin from being damaged by burning. Therefore, the most important reason for protecting your skin is to prevent sunburn. Not only is this painful, but damage to the skin, including sunburn, can stimulate the vitiligo to spread in some people. As vitiligo skin is particularly vulnerable to sunlight and needs protection, some brands of sunblock are classified by the NHS (The British National Health Service) as borderline substances which means they can be obtained on prescription from your doctor. Michael says he was first diagnosed at the earliest, during the time he released his ‘Off the Wall’ album. We can assume that maybe it started before he actually released the album in stores, which was in the mid 70s. Treatments were still being developed and the awareness of the disease was not there. So naturally, the only solution for Michael then was to cover it up using cosmetics. I’ve heard people ask ‘So why didn’t he try to regain his color’ making it seem as if he was desperate to just depigment his skin of its natural color. Michael covered it with darker makeup I’m sure, for as long as he could. If you look at the pictures, you will see that his face is obviously covered with cosmetics. The unevenness of it is there. So you can see that when it did start, he did try concealing it, obviously no one knew about it until he was visibly a shade lighter. Click on the second picture to get a better look. Compare Emmanuel to Michael, you’ll see that he’s probably wearing heavy facial makeup. As you’ve read the process of this disease can be gradual and slow. As time goes on, his skin color becomes even more uneven, and his cheeks begin to always seem to have a red tint to them. (Due to Discoid Lupus) You’ll see it all over his face and even his neck. Same with the lip color, it started as a way to conceal the discoloration on his lips, if you’ll notice the discoloration on the outline of the lips in the first picture, and some discoloration on his nose in others. Michael’s makeup artist for over 20 years, Karen Faye comments: “It started happening relatively early, he even was trying to hide it from me..he tried to hide it for quite awhile. He’d always try to cover it with makeup and even out his skin tone until it got so extensive. It’s all over his body. We were always trying to hide it and cover it for the longest time until he just had to tell Oprah and tell the world, ‘Listen I’m not trying to be white, I have a skin disease.’ In the beginning I tried to cover the light spots to match the darker part of his skin, but then it became so extensive that we had to go with the lighter part of his skin because his whole body was reacting…he’d have to be in complete full body makeup, every inch of his body. So it was easier to make the transition to him being to the lighter shade that he is.” No one can deny, after looking at these pictures, the fact that during this period of time, around the time of his Thriller release, Michael’s face was seriously uneven in color. When you bleach your skin, you apply the bleaching agent evenly, it would not create spotting. These pictures are just some of the many pictures that show evidence of uneven skin. Initially, Michael’s skin was very even as you will see in the comparison below. There were times even then that Michael would show his chest or arms, perhaps these were areas that hadn’t been affected at the time. You will see him appear in some of his later videos revealing these areas, this is possible because of makeup, or they were during times when his skin was even. When we see pictures of Michael now, he is almost always covered from head to toe, it is very rare that you will see any candid picture of Michael when he’s not performing or shooting some kind of video, where any part of his body, besides his head and hands are exposed. Most of all of his infamous outfits are made to cover his entire body. There probably is a reason for that. Time goes on and Michael gets lighter and lighter until he is eventually just literally WHITE, at least in comparison to other people. Had he been bleaching his skin from the start, Michael would never have been spotting. Michael went through depigmentation therapy, which is what someone might opt to do when the discolorations have covered most of the body and the use of makeup to hide the difference in color becomes an inconvenience. That’s why you will notice during around 1986 Michael was lighter, but not as white as he appears now. In Michael’s case, since he was always in the public eye, constantly being photographed, it would be quite embarrassing to show up to events and perform while your skin is spotted with two different colors. Katherine Jackson, Michael’s mother tells us: “His face is white because he has had this disease, and instead of having it spotted like a cow or something like that he just decided to just do the whole thing, because he could afford to do it.” Covering it up with makeup was only effective for awhile. As it gets worse, you have to apply more, as his make up artist stated, wearing full bodied makeup would be very hard. The depigmentation process takes awhile to complete and it is permanent. The medication monobenzylether of hydroquinone is used to do this and is very strong, it is only prescribed to vitiligo patients. People that bleach their skin to remove scars and minor discolorations use creams with only hydroquinone, which is reversible and not permanent. This is why when you buy bleaching creams at the store, it will always tell you that the pigmentation you wanted to get rid of may reappear I have yet to see or hear about anyone else that has gone through a drastic change in skin color by just bleaching their skin with regular products. I know of people bleaching their skin, but if you pay them any real attention you will notice the inconsistencies, they get darker then they get lighter again, this because of what was mentioned before, hydroquinone is not permanent. Also, getting your hands on monobenzylether of hydroquinone is not easy. So I don’t want to hear the excuse that he just somehow got his hands on it. You have to be prescribed something like that from a dermatologist. Like I’ve said before, people that bleach their skin do not spot. People with vitiligo have gotten to the point where their pigment has been totally stripped from all of the their body, they are typically snow white in color. Michael Jackson is very pale, even in comparison to white people. The only cases of such a drastic change in skin color that I’ve seen or read about are with vitiligo patients. People with vitiligo become very sensitive to the sun, because the natural protection that your skin has from the sun gets stripped away along with the pigmentation. If you go through depigmentation therapy the sensitivity of your skin to the sun becomes even worse. This is why when Michael is outside, most of the time you will see him shielding himself from the sun with either his hand or an umbrella. A lot of people don’t understand why he is with an umbrella all the time, this is the only reason. Even now you will see brown spots on various parts of Michael’s body, his arms and hands for example. Sometimes they are there and then sometimes they aren’t, which can be due to makeup or spontaneous repigmentation as mentioned before. Michael Jackson has vitiligo and that is the truth. People have used all kinds of things to dispute this, whether it be the ethnicity of the women he’s dated or the plastic surgery he’s gotten. It’s become a situation where he’s been forced to defend the fact that he is an African American, the fact that he’s not ashamed of who and what he is. Michael grew up idolizing black musicians, he did all the ‘black’ trends. From the music, to the hair styles and such. Michael had his greatest success when he was still visibly black…there was and is no reason for him to have desired to change his color. This is something that his family has backed him on for many years, even by his stern father who would probably never defend any of his children, had they ever bleached their skin. It has been said by Michael and by his sister Janet Jackson, that he isn’t the only one in the family to have it. This doesn’t mean that his sisters or brothers have to have it, it could have been a distant relative. Did you know that stress or traumatic events could trigger vitiligo if you are already susceptible to it genetically? Michael had it the hardest growing up, and even after he reached fame, who’s to say all of that didn’t trigger it? Most of the people that suffer from this disease have a hard time with people either not believing them about their condition or just people giving them a hard time about it, especially when they are African American. It can be a very hard thing to deal with, could you imagine someone harassing you about something that you can’t help?

What is Vitiligo? Vitiligo is a relatively common skin disorder, in which white spots or patches appear on the skin. These spots are caused by destruction or weakening of the pigment cells in those areas, resulting in the pigment being destroyed or no longer produced. In most cases, vitiligo is believed to be an autoimmune-related disorder. Although researchers are not exactly sure what causes the autoimmune response, more is being learned every year. In vitiligo, only the color of the skin is affected. The texture and other skin qualities remain normal. What are the symptoms of Vitiligo? People who develop vitiligo usually first notice white patches or spots (depigmentation) on their skin. The skin remains of normal texture, and there is usually no itching or other symptoms. These patches are more obvious in sun-exposed areas, including the hands, feet, arms, legs, face, and lips. Other common areas for white patches to appear are the armpits and groin and around the mouth, eyes, nostrils, navel, and genitals. Vitiligo generally appears in one of three patterns. In one pattern (focal pattern), the depigmentation is limited to one or only a few areas. Some people develop depigmented patches on only one side of their bodies (segmental vitiligo). But for most people who have vitiligo, depigmentation occurs on different parts of the body (generalized vitiligo), often similar on each side of the body. In addition to white patches on the skin, some people with vitiligo may experience white hair growing in on the scalp, eyelashes, eyebrows, and beard. In extremely rare cases, vitiligo can affect eye color or the pigment of the retina. Does genetics play a role? Most people with vitiligo have neither parents, nor children, nor siblings with vitiligo. Many have no other relatives with vitiligo. Vitiligo does appear to be hereditary, that is, it can run in families. Children whose parents have the disorder are more likely to develop vitiligo. There is no question about that. However, most children will not get vitiligo even if a parent has it, and most people with vitiligo do not have a family history of the disorder. So the chances of your child developing vitiligo appear to be very small. Nevertheless, there are sufficient numbers of families where vitiligo does appear among siblings, parents and children, such that we can assume a genetic factor. How does Vitiligo Develop? The beginning of Vitiligo and the severity of pigment loss differs with each patient. Light skinned people usually notice the pigment loss during the summer as the contrast between the vitiliginous skin and the suntanned skin becomes distinct. People with dark skin may observe the onset of Vitiligo at any time. Individuals who have severe cases will lose pigment over their entire body surface. There is no way to predict how much pigment an individual will lose, Illness and stress can result in more pigment loss. The degree of pigment loss can also vary within each Vitiligo patch, and a border of abnormally dark skin may encircle a patch of depigmented skin. Vitiligo frequently begins with a rapid loss of pigment which may be followed by a lengthy period when the skin color does not change. Later, the pigment loss may resume — perhaps after the individual has suffered physical trauma or stress. The loss of color may continue until, for unknown reasons, the process stops. Cycles of pigment loss, followed by periods of stability may continue indefinitely. It is rare for a patient with Vitiligo to repigment or regain skin color spontaneously. Most patients who say that they no longer have Vitiligo may actually have become depigmented and are no longer bothered by contrasting skin color. While such patients appear to be “cured”, they really are not. People who have Vitiligo all over their bodies do not look like albinos because the color of their hair may not change — or it can be dyed — and eye color does not change. Emotional Impact Most individuals with Vitiligo are upset because of the uneven skin color. It is difficult for those who do not have Vitiligo to appreciate the significance of this problem to the victim. Depigmentation Therapy If a person has Vitiligo over more than half of the exposed areas of the body, he or she is not a candidate for repigmentation. Rather, such a person may want to try depigmentation of the remaining pigmented skin. The drug for depigmentation is monobenzylether of hydroquinone. Many patients with Vitiligo are at first apprehensive about the idea of depigmentation and reluctant to go ahead. However, patients who achieve complete depigmentation are usually satisfied with the end results. Some people become allergic to the medication and must discontinue therapy. This therapy takes about a year to complete. The pigment removal is permanent. Sensitivity to the sun Patches of vitiligo skin have no natural protection against the sun’s rays. This is because vitiligo skin is white as the melanocytes which produce melanin (skin pigment) are not active. The effect of the sun is normally to increase melanin production and to turn the skin brown; this is a protective mechanism to prevent the skin from being damaged by burning. Therefore, the most important reason for protecting your skin is to prevent sunburn. Not only is this painful, but damage to the skin, including sunburn, can stimulate the vitiligo to spread in some people. As vitiligo skin is particularly vulnerable to sunlight and needs protection, some brands of sunblock are classified by the NHS (The British National Health Service) as borderline substances which means they can be obtained on prescription from your doctor. Michael says he was first diagnosed at the earliest, during the time he released his ‘Off the Wall’ album. We can assume that maybe it started before he actually released the album in stores, which was in the mid 70s. Treatments were still being developed and the awareness of the disease was not there. So naturally, the only solution for Michael then was to cover it up using cosmetics. I’ve heard people ask ‘So why didn’t he try to regain his color’ making it seem as if he was desperate to just depigment his skin of its natural color. Michael covered it with darker makeup I’m sure, for as long as he could. If you look at the pictures, you will see that his face is obviously covered with cosmetics. The unevenness of it is there. So you can see that when it did start, he did try concealing it, obviously no one knew about it until he was visibly a shade lighter. Click on the second picture to get a better look. Compare Emmanuel to Michael, you’ll see that he’s probably wearing heavy facial makeup. As you’ve read the process of this disease can be gradual and slow. As time goes on, his skin color becomes even more uneven, and his cheeks begin to always seem to have a red tint to them. (Due to Discoid Lupus) You’ll see it all over his face and even his neck. Same with the lip color, it started as a way to conceal the discoloration on his lips, if you’ll notice the discoloration on the outline of the lips in the first picture, and some discoloration on his nose in others. Michael’s makeup artist for over 20 years, Karen Faye comments: “It started happening relatively early, he even was trying to hide it from me..he tried to hide it for quite awhile. He’d always try to cover it with makeup and even out his skin tone until it got so extensive. It’s all over his body. We were always trying to hide it and cover it for the longest time until he just had to tell Oprah and tell the world, ‘Listen I’m not trying to be white, I have a skin disease.’ In the beginning I tried to cover the light spots to match the darker part of his skin, but then it became so extensive that we had to go with the lighter part of his skin because his whole body was reacting…he’d have to be in complete full body makeup, every inch of his body. So it was easier to make the transition to him being to the lighter shade that he is.” No one can deny, after looking at these pictures, the fact that during this period of time, around the time of his Thriller release, Michael’s face was seriously uneven in color. When you bleach your skin, you apply the bleaching agent evenly, it would not create spotting. These pictures are just some of the many pictures that show evidence of uneven skin. Initially, Michael’s skin was very even as you will see in the comparison below. There were times even then that Michael would show his chest or arms, perhaps these were areas that hadn’t been affected at the time. You will see him appear in some of his later videos revealing these areas, this is possible because of makeup, or they were during times when his skin was even. When we see pictures of Michael now, he is almost always covered from head to toe, it is very rare that you will see any candid picture of Michael when he’s not performing or shooting some kind of video, where any part of his body, besides his head and hands are exposed. Most of all of his infamous outfits are made to cover his entire body. There probably is a reason for that. Time goes on and Michael gets lighter and lighter until he is eventually just literally WHITE, at least in comparison to other people. Had he been bleaching his skin from the start, Michael would never have been spotting. Michael went through depigmentation therapy, which is what someone might opt to do when the discolorations have covered most of the body and the use of makeup to hide the difference in color becomes an inconvenience. That’s why you will notice during around 1986 Michael was lighter, but not as white as he appears now. In Michael’s case, since he was always in the public eye, constantly being photographed, it would be quite embarrassing to show up to events and perform while your skin is spotted with two different colors. Katherine Jackson, Michael’s mother tells us: “His face is white because he has had this disease, and instead of having it spotted like a cow or something like that he just decided to just do the whole thing, because he could afford to do it.” Covering it up with makeup was only effective for awhile. As it gets worse, you have to apply more, as his make up artist stated, wearing full bodied makeup would be very hard. The depigmentation process takes awhile to complete and it is permanent. The medication monobenzylether of hydroquinone is used to do this and is very strong, it is only prescribed to vitiligo patients. People that bleach their skin to remove scars and minor discolorations use creams with only hydroquinone, which is reversible and not permanent. This is why when you buy bleaching creams at the store, it will always tell you that the pigmentation you wanted to get rid of may reappear I have yet to see or hear about anyone else that has gone through a drastic change in skin color by just bleaching their skin with regular products. I know of people bleaching their skin, but if you pay them any real attention you will notice the inconsistencies, they get darker then they get lighter again, this because of what was mentioned before, hydroquinone is not permanent. Also, getting your hands on monobenzylether of hydroquinone is not easy. So I don’t want to hear the excuse that he just somehow got his hands on it. You have to be prescribed something like that from a dermatologist. Like I’ve said before, people that bleach their skin do not spot. People with vitiligo have gotten to the point where their pigment has been totally stripped from all of the their body, they are typically snow white in color. Michael Jackson is very pale, even in comparison to white people. The only cases of such a drastic change in skin color that I’ve seen or read about are with vitiligo patients. People with vitiligo become very sensitive to the sun, because the natural protection that your skin has from the sun gets stripped away along with the pigmentation. If you go through depigmentation therapy the sensitivity of your skin to the sun becomes even worse. This is why when Michael is outside, most of the time you will see him shielding himself from the sun with either his hand or an umbrella. A lot of people don’t understand why he is with an umbrella all the time, this is the only reason. Even now you will see brown spots on various parts of Michael’s body, his arms and hands for example. Sometimes they are there and then sometimes they aren’t, which can be due to makeup or spontaneous repigmentation as mentioned before. Michael Jackson has vitiligo and that is the truth. People have used all kinds of things to dispute this, whether it be the ethnicity of the women he’s dated or the plastic surgery he’s gotten. It’s become a situation where he’s been forced to defend the fact that he is an African American, the fact that he’s not ashamed of who and what he is. Michael grew up idolizing black musicians, he did all the ‘black’ trends. From the music, to the hair styles and such. Michael had his greatest success when he was still visibly black…there was and is no reason for him to have desired to change his color. This is something that his family has backed him on for many years, even by his stern father who would probably never defend any of his children, had they ever bleached their skin. It has been said by Michael and by his sister Janet Jackson, that he isn’t the only one in the family to have it. This doesn’t mean that his sisters or brothers have to have it, it could have been a distant relative. Did you know that stress or traumatic events could trigger vitiligo if you are already susceptible to it genetically? Michael had it the hardest growing up, and even after he reached fame, who’s to say all of that didn’t trigger it? Most of the people that suffer from this disease have a hard time with people either not believing them about their condition or just people giving them a hard time about it, especially when they are African American. It can be a very hard thing to deal with, could you imagine someone harassing you about something that you can’t help?

He used tom cruise and his voodoo magic Scientology methods to produce an effect on the telephoto lenses of cameras that photograph and film him.

Took too many showers, he's a nice clean kid : )

Michael Jackson does not have vitiligo. As much as a fan as I am of him, I can accept that he is a very insecure person (when it comes to his appearance) and has a condition called body dismorphic disorder (not vitiligo!). This condition is driven by an excessive concern over one's appearance. This conditioned coupled with the era in which he grew up, the effect that stardom had, and the influence of his family have made much more twisted in regards to this condition and his other problems. Can you bleach you skin? YES How? Using Hydroquinone or Monobenzone (the monobenzyl ether of hydroquinone). These are bleaching agents (and by bleaching I mean compunds that stop the synthesis of melanin in the skin) that will permanently depigment the skin. Let me just say that I feel really sad for Michael. The amount and or method of application of these drugs he must have used to achieve his depigmentation must have been quite toxic. Even with skin cancer aside, I can't imagine what the consequences to his health will be. I think his money would have been much better spent on therapy than on all his extreme attempts to change his appearance so drastically. I wish him the best!

it should not matter what michael jackson looks like on the out side it is what is on the inside that maters michael is a truly fantastick pearson he has helped a lot of people and would now if there was not so meany people that belive rumers and aligations that are not true the media only show us what thay whant to thay dont get payed for the truth.i think micheal is a veary attraved man.

I don't think he's trying to "make a point"....I think he's mentally ill. He obviously suffers from some type of body-dysmorphic disorder.... I don't think there is any altruistic intent at all in his compulsive desire to completely eradicate the body he was born with.

I heard somewhere that he was trying to look like a friend of his by making himself white also (changing his skin and nose), but it's been a while since I heard this so I can't remember who said it and who he was trying to look like, sorry!

i don't think he was trying to make a point, i didn't even know changing your skin color like that was possible untill micheal. some say he went from a black man to a white woman, i agree. here's a fun counter question, why do people go tanning? its the same thing on a less extreme scale, why is everyone trying to get a darker skin tone? i think ill post that question right now lol

y should we say that michael has or has not got vitiligo when none of us has seen his medical records we should not jugh some one that we dont even no be thankfull for all he has done and not what he may have or may not have done people are so cut up in outher peoples lifes maybe thay should concerntrate on ther own lifes thay talk about things that dont even matter

The real question is not how, but why? The answer to that is that he thought it would attract more little boy.

He saw the bill for his 'nose job' yo...

is there any other method to whitening skin colour??

I believe he has vitiligo. Vitiligo or leukoderma is a chronic skin condition that causes loss of pigment, resulting in irregular pale patches of skin. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitiligo

ohh.. i always thought his skin turned white because he had too much plastic surgery..

He has a disease, I worked with a man who had the same problem. It normally leaves the skin with patches of black and white. Sometimes people will have the exposed parts of their body bleached to have a uniform color. This may be why people think he tried to "become" white.

i think no one has michaels medical records so y say somethink you dont no is true michael has a skin conditon called vitiligo it is a skin conditon lack of pigment in the skin resulting irregular pale patches michael is a good man if you listen to child hood and thay dont relly care about us you will no his is not a bad man

He must have had his skin bleached. I feel so sorry for him.

I don't know. Since so many people hate him, I'll give him a break and just assume that he's telling the truth about his skin disorder. I suppose it doesn't matter though. Same result either way.

I think getting his hair caught on fire during the Pepsi ad caused a shock to his system that resulted in his skin turning pale. Unfortunately, his facial problems were caused by bodgy plastic surgery.

some people say that he got surgery done for it and he says he used skin bleach cream after he got burned when his hair caught fire yrs ago during a coca cola comercial shoot, which is true but no one really knows for sure

"Jackson's skin was a medium-brown color for the entire duration of his youth, but starting in the early 1980s, his skin gradually grew paler. This change gained widespread media coverage, including rumors that Jackson was bleaching his skin. However, in the early 1980s Jackson was diagnosed with vitiligo and lupus, the latter of which is potentially lethal but is in remission in Jackson's case. Both conditions make Jackson sensitive to overexposure to sunlight, which can cause his lupus condition to reawaken. Jackson first spoke publicly about vitiligo in a 1993 interview with Oprah Winfrey. To treat both these conditions Jackson uses Solaquin, Retin A and Benoquin. He must also have hydroxychloroquin injected directly into his scalp regularly. Ironically, the treatments he uses for his condition further lightens his skin tone, and with the application of pancake makeup to even out his skin tone, he can appear very pale." Source and further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Jackson#Physical_appearance_and_health_concerns

i have to go with he used fair and lovely

SKIN BLEACH IS NOT NOT EXIST. the bleaching creams with hydroquinone sold in department stores are only use to help fade dark scars left behind from acne in people of color. they barely even do that!!! let alone turn a dark complexion to porcelin, milky white....lmao. can you people use google. if if existed to that degree it would make world headlines and the scientist who invented or discovered it would be world known for it. but that hasn't happened...Go figure. vitiligo is triggered in people with the gene by trauma, usually a bad burn. Mike was burned in the early 80's and that's when his issue got bad. After being diagnosed, he used make-up and then eventually more make-up. He wore the one glove in an emergency to hide the fact that one hand had already turned white. people just thought it was a cool fashion thing he was doing. why he had all the plastic surgery, who knows. but my Dr phil brain says it was probably to control some aspect of his appearance seeing as he was losing control over his skin. he was 23 at the time. and most of his plastic surgery was all before the age of 30. i honestly think he was simply traumatized by his diagnosis, as any young person would be. he needed to get some therapy and he didn't get the emotional and mental help that ALL human beings need to get when faced with a life debilitating illness. i for one will not HATE him for that. Lets just pretend, all you really think he bleached his skin...let's pretend he didn't for a second. shame on you for degrading someone over their medical illness. What if you are wrong? blame the man for alot of other messed up things he has done, like stupidly having kids in his bed ...but for having a disease. Leave that one alone, lest it happen to you

From my understanding, he has vitiligo (See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitiligo ) The reason for the sequined glove was to cover that fact... His hand was turning white while much of the rest of him was his birth black skin tone. Then he used makeup for a while to cover it, but it progressed to the point that it was easier to cover the black than the white. See http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=4535420&page=1 and http://news.aol.com/story/_a/disease-turning-black-tv-anchor-white/20071218140309990001 for more. On the latter, run through the pictures. He was on the Montel show and they discussed his "coming out" with vitiligo, and that Michael Jackson had it. As for MJ's plastic surgery... I don't know why he did that.

Because you touch yourself at night.

It is probably something only Michael and his closest associates know.

He's got some mental issues. If you look at his life, it's pretty damn easy to see why he has mental issues. His white skin is just another thing that happened to him during his craziest stages.

Because he was petrified at the thought of dropping the baby?

the people he was controlled and raised by, he is a child actor/singer who got fed bullshit his whole life

rare skin condition caused it, it wasn't a choice

Or maybe it’s fear that he won’t make as good a Muslim as his Big Brother. . Watch, this version's in two parts. The unsplit version takes a very, very long time to load, it’s had over a quarter of a million viewings. .

why did he, did he have a skin disease or summin, thats what i heard

did he have a skin disease

Vitiligo is not a disease! It is a skin condition brought on by "something else". African American's have skin problems when they have cosmetic surgery...not all but most. The skin does not grow back in the same color. Sometimes they can have the color tatooed and it will look the same but this is not good for large areas. Michael Jackson does not have Vitiligo...he has had way too many cosmetic proceduers!! He has taken a powerful drug that is give to people who have serious Vitiligo and have more than 75% of it on their bodies...it takes all the color out of the skin or it stops the melinin from making the skin color and you have to keep taking this drug. It also makes you more easier to get skin cancer. I am not sure what this drug is called but if you search Google by putting Vitiligo in you will find out all sorts of info on it. I have a sever problem with it and it is very upsetting to have people compair you to Michael Jackson, who chose his situation. Mine is a reslut of Thyroid problems...it is also inherited...my mother had it but not as bad as I have it. What is worse is that people make fun of you and ask "Whats all over your skin" then they want to know if it is contagious! It's not! I look like I have been burned all over my body. It's no fun having to wear heavy make up just to look normal! You can also get Vitiligo from too much use of a Tanning Bed or from serious sun burns! But it is mostly a result from something else like Thyroid problems or Diabeaties! And the worst thing is that there is nothing that can be done for it...with the exception of taking the powerful drug to turn all of your skin a pasty/creamy white. That is why Michael Jackson uses an umbrella all the time when he is out side...you burn very, very easily and quickly! I am open to talking about my Vitiligo I have read up on it extensively and talked to many doctors. I have had this since I was a child and I now have a totally white face and huge patches all over my arms and legs, my hands are completely white, but the normal parts of my skin still tan, whether I want them to or not. People can really be rude and nasty towards me too! I hope this is of some help in some small way to you and also to any one who has this horrible skin condition!

He thought people would be nicer to a white pedo than a black pedo LOL so much for the plan jackson *ducks* :)

No. I think he had something done to make the parts that show white. Kinda like he had so many nose jobs that it looks almost non-existant! Also a lot of ppl think he and Janet look alike but I think he and LaToya do!jmo

plastic surgery over and over

Apparently there's these rare pills that can change you from black to white... not sure about vise verser. But Michael Jackson totaly denys doing anything that changed his skin colour. I guess people just turn white over night.

See http://www.answerbag.com/a_view/3446489

I think that there are a lot of Michael's "people" out there posting these adament defenses of him trying to do damage control on the damage he has done to his own image. He does not have vitiligo. He bleached his skin just like he cut up his face to look more "white". If he has anything, it is the condition called Body Dismorphic Disorder. Or what,...do you buy his answer of, "I'm changing" when pressed about the enormous changes to his facial features?

Michael Jackson absolutely has vitiligo. I have an aunt who has it so I know what it looks like. Not to mention, Jacko was a foot in front of me once so I got to see it up close. If he was bleaching his skin, then his skin would be one uniform shade. The reason he looks entirely white is because of all the makeup used to even out the skin tone. If you see shots of him without makeup, you can see the brown all over him, and the white splotches. See full photographic evidence here: http://popspiracy.blogspot.com/ It's genetic. LaToya has it too.

if you had watched Robot chicken you would know that michael jackson didn't turn white, after the "hair on fire" incedent aliens abducted michael and replaced him with a white impostor in an attempt to take over the world. *

A DISEASE, I THINK, I HEARD LIZ TALKING ABOUT IT ONE DAY. ELIZIBETH TAYLOR.

Just google 'PopSpiracy' and there's a blog with undoctored scans of Michael since the 1970s where you can see the skin disease's transformation where his skin is exposed or makeup melted off.

lol no he has vitiligo look it up retards below me

To depigment or repigment. Well, consider this: if you repigment, spots can still come later and be seen. If you depigment, the skin is lighter and you won't see any new spots. I do understand his decision.

He had a skin condition and It made white blotches appear on his skin, so he had It chemically changed white =)

I don’t know why people are bothered if Michael Jackson had turned himself white by medication or he had a medical condition turned his skin white. It is really unfair. If he had a medical problem turned him white we have to feel sorry for him and also if he tried to turn himself white also we have to feel sorry for him because I am sure that he suffered from being belonged to a country discriminating the black.

Does it really matter. We should feel bad for him that he had such a deep seeded hatred of who he was born as, that he felt the need to turn himself into something completely different by changing his features and skin color.

tell me

"It doesn't matter if you're black or white."

He used bleach and a 10 year course of plastic surgery and he done it because his dad was evil. He looked like his dad more than all his brothers and sisters so he bleached himself changed his nose, hair, eyebrows and lips. The only thing he didnt change were his eyes because he had his mums eyes.

Anyone wishing to lighten their skin can use a prescribed product called hydroquinone. Plastic surgeons routinely prescribe this medication for scars, freckles, etc. Vitilago is a medical condition that appears splotchy it does not involve the entire body.

Michael Jackson Had a Skin diseases That Caused Black People To Turn white and Its a Rummor That He Bleached His Self. There's The Truth. Didn't u see the pictures he was Black Then he Got a Lil Bit Whiter and Whiter and thats how he got so white.

He said he had a pigment disease.

THE DOCTOR TURNED HIM WHITE IT COSTED A LOT OF MONEY BUT HE PAID FOR IT AND THATS HOW HE TURNED WHITE F YOU NEED MORE INFORMATION TEXT BACK.

he used to drink milk everyday.

he said it was vitiligo. but im sure he got that done to himself. he was always unhappy with his looks. especially his nose.

he has a condition called vitiligo, which turns dark skin white. However, this condition creates white splotches that accumulate over time. Michael Jackson's whole body turned white without splotches. This leads me to believe he used some sort of ether to remove the pigment from his skin.

he bleached it !

no you donkey faces he went to the hospital and they redid his face simple: nobody ever thinks he paid like a thousand bucks for that it costes to much money but he paid for it.duh!