Answers to Questions Kids Ask! - Where "Why?" Turns to "Wow!"
Born on this day
September 19, 20111931 - Brook Benton
1934 - Brian Epstein
1928 - Pete Murray
1933 - David McCallum
1940 - Zandra Rhodes
1940 - Bill Medley
1945 - Kate Adie
1946 - Michael Elphick
1948 - Jeremy Irons
1949 - Twiggy
1963 - David Seaman
The answer is a simple one. Melanin. Melanin, you know, is the chemical pigment that gives us all our skin color. No matter what the shade of your skin (or hair, for that matter) — white, yellow, tan, olive, brown, or black, — the color comes from varying amounts of melanin produced by cells in your skin.
When you are exposed to the sun, those cells begin to produce extra melanin. That’s how you tan. (And, regardless, of skin color, everyone’s skin is affected by the sun!) It’s also what causes freckles. Sometimes the tanning isn’t uniform and some of the cells containing melanin seem to be especially energetic. They work overtime. That causes some tiny patches of skin to darken from melanin, while others don’t. Voila. You’ve got Freckles!
Link to this question!
What makes people have different skin colors?
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Can you get sunburned if it’s cloudy outside?
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Why does your hair turn gray when you get older?
It’s hard to imagine that those lovely locks of blond or brunette hair on your head may someday change color so dramatically. But your hair doesn’t turn white from a…
What is a bruise?
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Why does the skin of a banana turn brown when I leave it outside?
Bananas turn brown when left outside after a while because certain chemicals in the fruit react with the oxygen in the air by destroying cells, creating that icky brown color….