As a result, humans adapted with darker skin tones, super-charged by melanin.įor example, someone who has native roots traced to Nigeria may have darker pigmentation than an individual from Morocco. I won't bog you down with science, except to say that the closer early man lived to the equator, the stronger the sun exposure. For example, guys with blue eyes have an iris that melanin pigmentation that gives them their blue look. It also is the lead agent behind hair and eye color. Melanin, a complex polymer made from the amino acid tyrosine, is responsible for skin pigmentation. Because of harmful ultraviolet rays caused by the sun’s light, homo erectus evolved during the Pleistocene Epoch into darker tones to protect the dermis from damage. Our ancestors were in constant search for food, causing them to move into hot, open areas where food and water were abundant. In other words, why do some people have fair colored skin and others have a darker color?Īccording to information published on the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, the reason can be traced to adaptation and the location of early man in his relationship with the sun. People often wonder about skin color variation. Skin tones – shades of black BLACK MEN SKIN TONES Obviously, my list isn’t complete, but it does cover much of the gambit. I’ve taken the liberty of breaking down the different shades of black men, based on research and conversations with others. The truth is I was able to find TONS of pictures of super-hot black men with different skin tones. Well, it turns out that her advice was dead on. More research is needed on the diverse health issues of a vulnerable and underexamined population.Īdolescence behavioral issues gay health issues men of color psychosocial and cultural issues.Having nothing to lose, I figured why not.
This review concludes that studies on Black YGBMSM health places sex at the forefront to the neglect of other critical health domains. Last, there was a noteworthy deficit of qualitative studies and research exploring intersectional identity and health.
Important sociostructural factors, including sexual networks and race-based discrimination, were poorly represented. Data on health care delivery/receipt and health insurance were underrepresented tobacco use and substance abuse were seldom addressed. Few articles included content on psychosocial functioning, including bullying/harassment, suicide, and racial/ethnic identity. Out of 54 articles, most were published after 2004 ( N = 49 90.7%) and addressed some aspect of sexual health ( N = 50 92.6%). A coding sheet was created to collect information on all content areas and related subtopics and computed descriptive statistics. An extensive literature review and content analysis of health-related peer-reviewed articles (1988-2013) was conducted that targeted Black YGBMSM, examining five content areas: sexual health, health care, substance use, psychosocial functioning, and sociostructural factors.
Black young gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (YGBMSM) are at high risk for negative health outcomes, though this population is underrepresented in the health literature.