Melanin Melanin by MAD Writer Productions Melanin is important because its the most primitive and universal pigment in living organisms. Melanin is produced in the pineal gland. Abundantly found in primitive organisms such as fungi, as well as advanced primates. Furthermore, within each living organism, melanin appears to be located in the major functional sites. For example, in vertebrates, melanin is not only present in the skin, eyes, ears, central nervous system, it can also be found in the pineal gland, pituitary gland, thyroid gland, thymus gland, adrenal gland, and the barathary gland. Melanin is abundantly present in the viscera, including the heart, liver, arteries, the muscles, and the gastrointestinal tract; thus, within each and every living organ which aids the human body melanin appears. Regardless of what color your skin appears to be all genes in all creatures on this planet are black because they are coated with melanin. The amount of melanin in the skin is one of the most variable of human traits, and many polygenes are involved.

Groups of people or the population of the world were once classified according to the skin shade: Black (Nubians), White (Caucasians), Yellow (Orientals) and Red (Native Americans) etc... We must realize that just because this is the way they have classified people does not mean this is the way it should be. The hues of color of your skin depend on several factors. First is the amount of melanin in the outer layers of the skin. Melanin acts as a filter to prevent damage to the delicate deeper layers of the skin, by penetration of ultraviolet light. There is more than one type of melanin. You have brain melanin, also known as neuromelanin, and you have skin melanin. Neuromelanin does not run parallel with skin melanin. Whether white, red, yellow, black, or brown, neuromelanin plays an important role in functioning of the brain, and nervous system. Melanosomes (small structures within the melanocyte cells where melanin is synthesized) find their way into the hair cells, giving them color. (Two types of melanin, one dark brown and one red, are responsible for all hair shades).

Pigments that contribute to skin color are called carotene, a yellowish hemoglobin, in blood vessels (pink-red), and melanin (black, brown, red). Darker skins are dominated by melanin, which is produced from the amino acid tyrosine, by pigment cells (melanocytes) in the skin. Melanocytes are characterized by long, fixed extensions of the outer cell membrane. In humans, other mammals, and birds, melanin is dispersed permantely throughout each melanocyte, including the extensions, and is also, transported to nearby skin cells. In other words, if you increase the amount of melanin in the skin you become darker and vice versa. So, what is so important about melanin? Melanin controls all mental and physical body activities. Melanin is an extremely stable molecule, and highly resistant to the digestion by most acids and bases, and is one of the hardest molecule to ever be analyzed. If you do not purify your melanin molecule, you will not heal your body of diseases. In parts of Africa, India, and Australia the deposits of melanin in the skin is heaviest because the people have been exposed to the most intense sunlight for generations.

Northern Europeans have the least amount of deposits in their skin are lighter, not to mention their weather is cloudy and cool. The thickness of the outer layer of the skin is also a factor. People with darker skin complexions have thicker layers of skin. And this is a factor alone enhances the skins filtering effect. The thinner the skin the least melanin. When the skin is very thin, the blood vessels show through and give a pinkish color. When an individual adapts to the shifting of the intensity of the sunlight, the skin becomes darker because they are exposed to more sunlight. Thats how you get suntans because its the result of both thickening and increasing the melanin in the skin. Keratin is the substance the nails of the fingers and toes are made of. It also appears in the outer layer of the skin. When keratin deposits are heavy, the skin has a yellowish, brown shade, as in the Mongolian populations. They have adapted along a different pathway to avoid the damaging effects of ultraviolet light. The reddish hue of the Native Americans results from a combination of keratin and melanin deposits. Now, you might be asking yourself what does melanin have to do with ultra-violet light?

Well, the DNA molecules are all covered with melanin. One of the things that melanin does is it actually absorbs ultraviolet radiation. Melanin is constantly reaching out towards the ultraviolet rays of the sun. Ultraviolet radiation has been found to be dangerous to protein. When protein is passed through ultraviolet radiation it actually causes the molecule to blend. Just like you have some of our sisters and brothers who go to hairdressers, killing their ethers just to get their hair done. No offence to those who do this type of activity so dont go off the deep end with me. Im not here to tell you what you should do or not do, because you have your own mind but if you choose to go to hair dressers and get up under these strange lights and you have to wear special kind of glasses with it because of the ultraviolet radiation. When your ethers are exposed to the chemical or protein structure in those perms and tents it causes it to lock into a certain position, then your hair will not change. Thats the same thing that happens to your chromosomes or genes.

When ultraviolet rays are exposed to the chromosomes or the genes, in order for your genes to be able to do what they are suppose to do naturally, they have to be able to change. But when they are exposed to ultraviolet radiation they cant. Thus when the time or need comes for it to change they will not be able to change. This will result in deformities in your body. Melanin can also be toxic. Eating the improper foods or overeating can block your connection with the suns energy. When the suns energy cannot reach the melanin, diseases manifest. Melanin is deranged only when it becomes toxic. Any individual who might have toxic melanin will act in a very similar manner, that which is primitive, animalistic, and barbaric. It is a civilizing chemical when it is not toxic. It has physical properties, and personality traits, which distinguishes it from others. Thats why our bodies are dedicated to making melanin. Vitamin B keeps melanin clean, not to mention good eating habits.

If you want to continue to consume pork, smoke weed, and drink alcohol thats your own business but your body is dedicated to making melanin, thus if you make it toxic, youre only hurting yourself. Melanin is like a superconductor, or like a battery in a car. It always stay charged when it is exposed to things such as light, sound, color, and sun light. It will absorb it to the point where the melanin will actually absorb the additional energy and recharge it- self to a brand new level. Your body has committed itself to creating melanin so you can survive. The melanin in your body is always partial charged. When you look around things like sound, light, sunlight, or colors, the melanin will absorb the additional energy, and recharge itself, taking your body to another level. If youre around sounds that arent good for you your body reacts to it. Your melanin can convert light energy to sound energy, thats why an entertainer like Michael Jackson, who was a big hit back in the days. What he was doing was using his melanin to convert light energy to sound energy.

Now that he is lacking melanin he hasnt been able to really get a big hit like in the past. People with melanin are walking radios and the very dark skinned people are very sensitive to the different types of radio frequency or thought patterns that are in the environment. So everything you do, everything you listen to, everything you eat affects you. It affects your melanin. Human Biological Adaptability: Skin Color as an Adaptation is essentially unable to tan While skin tanning is often most noticeable on light complexioned people, even those with very dark brown skin can tan as a result of prolonged exposure to the sun. Some Northwest Europeans have substantially lost the ability to tan as a result of relaxed natural selection. Their skin burns and peels rather than tans. This is due to the fact that they produce a defective form of a skin protein Mc1r (melanocortin-1 receptor) which is necessary for the production of melanin. They are at a distinct disadvantage in tropical and subtropical environments. Not only do they suffer the discomfort of readily burning, but they are at a much higher risk for skin cancer. The same is true of albinos . It would be harmful if melanin acted as a complete shield.

A certain amount of shortwave ultraviolet radiation (UVB) must penetrate the outer skin layer in order for the body to produce vitamin D. Approximately 90% of this vitamin in people normally is synthesized in their skin and the kidneys from a cholesterol-like precursor chemical with the help of ultraviolet radiation. The remaining 10% comes from foods such as fatty fish and egg yolks. Simple vitamin D is converted by our bodies into two sequential forms. The last form, commonly referred to as vitamin D3, is needed for the intestines to absorb calcium and phosphorus from food for bone growth and repair. Calcium is also necessary in adults to maintain normal heart action, blood clotting, and a stable nervous system. New evidence suggests that vitamin D may help prevent a wide range of cancers, including those of the colon and breasts. Vitamin D plays an additional important role in promoting the production of cathelicidin, which helps to defend our bodies against fungal, bacterial, and viral infections, including the common flu. Too much ultraviolet radiation penetrating the skin may cause the breakdown of folate in the body, which can cause anemia . Folate is derived from folic acid (one of the B vitamins) in our food.

Pregnant women who are deficient in folate are at a higher risk of having miscarriages and babies with neural tube defects . Because folate is needed for DNA replication in dividing cells, its absence can have an effect on many body processes, including the production of sperm cells. It may be that the ability to produce melanin was selected for in our early human ancestors because it helped preserve the body's supply of folate in addition to reducing the chances of developing skin cancer. People who live in far northern latitudes, where solar radiation is relatively weak most of the year, have an advantage if their skin has little shielding pigmentation. Nature selects for less melanin when ultraviolet radiation is weak. In such an environment, very dark skin is a disadvantage because it can prevent people from producing enough vitamin D, potentially resulting in rickets disease in children and osteoporosis in adults. Contributing to the development of osteoporosis in older people is the fact that their skin generally loses some of its ability to produce vitamin D. Women who had prolonged vitamin D deficiencies as girls have a higher incidence of pelvic deformities that prevent normal delivery of babies. The Inuit people of the American Subarctic are an exception.

They have moderately heavy skin pigmentation despite the far northern latitude at which they live. While this is a disadvantage for vitamin D production, they apparently made up for it by eating fish and sea mammal blubber that are high in vitamin D. In addition, the Inuit have been in the far north for only about 5,000 years. This may not have been enough time for significantly lower melanin production to have been selected for by nature. In the United States and other developed nations, milk is now usually fortified with vitamins D and A in order to prevent developmental problems such as those described above. However, the popularity of carbonated soft drinks and other alternatives to milk along with a decrease in the amount of time spent outdoors has led to a considerable rise in the rate of rickets disease. Not surprisingly, vitamin D deficiency is most acute in the winter in temperate and colder zones, especially among people of African ancestry. There is a growing epidemic of vitamin D deficiency in the United States. The 2007-2008 "National Government Health and Nutrition Examination Survey" found that only 23% of teens and adults had a sufficient amount of this essential vitamin in their blood. It was 45% a decade earlier.

The rate for African Americans in particular was far worse. It has dropped from 12% to only 3% having what doctors consider to be an adequate amount of vitamin D for overall good health. Given this difference, it is not surprising that 15% African American women have pelvis deformities, while the rate among European Americans is only 2%. There is also a strong correlation between the amount of sunlight that children are exposed to and whether or not they will develop multiple sclerosis as adults. Most cases of this degenerative neural disorder are in the temperate regions of the world where the sunlight is rarely intense. Children growing up in tropical and subtropical regions rarely develop MS regardless of where their ancestors came from. This protection apparently continues for those who move to far northern or far southern regions after 16 years of age. What processes are responsible for this protection from MS and its possible relationship to skin color are unknown. New research by Nina Jablonski and George Chaplin has led to the discovery that women generally produce 3-4% less melanin in their skin than do men in all populations of the world. They suggest that this is probably due to the fact that women have far higher calcium requirements during their reproductive years.

Mate selection preference and other cultural practices may also be partly responsible for this gender difference in skin coloration. Nina Jablonski breaks the illusion of skin color --explanation of why humans have a wide variation in skin color around the world. This link takes you to an external website. To return here, you must click the "back" button on your browser program. (length = 14 mins, 46 secs) Skin Color Distribution Around the World Before the mass global migrations of people during the last 500 years, dark skin color was mostly concentrated in the southern hemisphere near the equator and light color progressively increased farther away, as illustrated in the map below. In fact, the majority of dark pigmented people lived within 20� of the equator. Most of the lighter pigmented people lived in the northern hemisphere north of 20� latitude, where ultraviolet radiation is much less intense on average. (Data for native populations collected by R. Biasutti prior to 1940.) Such a non-random distribution pattern of human skin color was predicted by Constantin Wilhelm Lambert Gloger, a 19th century German zoologist.

In 1833, he observed that heavily pigmented animals are to be found mostly in hot climates where there is intense sunshine. Conversely, those in cold climates closer to the poles commonly have light pigmentation. Presumably, the relative intensity of solar radiation is largely responsible for this distribution pattern. There are exceptions to Gloger's rule in the animal kingdom. In some species the survival value of having a camouflaged body can be more important than the selective pressures of ultraviolet radiation. This is the case with arctic hares, which are white like snow in the winter and mottled black, brown, and gray similar to the rocky ground in their region after the snow melts in the summer. These color changes make it more difficult for arctic foxes to prey on them. Among humans, mate selection preferences may counter some of the evolutionary trend in skin color predicted by Gloger. Ultraviolet radiation is also blocked to some degree by hair, clothing, smog, fog, smoke, clouds, and trees. The Inuit case described earlier suggests that diet may additionally be a significant factor in some societies.

NEWS: In the February 2007 issue of the Journal of Nutrition, a research team led by Lisa Bodnar of the University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health reported that among 400 first-time pregnant women from that city who participated in their study, only 16.1% of African Americans and 52.9% of European Americans had sufficient amounts of vitamin D in their blood to be considered healthy at the end of their pregnancies. This was despite the fact that more than 90% of them had regularly taken standard doses of prenatal vitamin supplements. Tests of umbilical cord blood indicated that only 7.6% of the African American infants and 33.9% of the European American ones had adequate amounts of vitamin D at birth. The authors concluded that prenatal vitamins should include higher doses of vitamin D, especially in the northern regions of the U.S. Skin Pigmentation Disorders: MedlinePlus Skin Pigmentation Disorders URL of this page: Skin Pigmentation Disorders Patient Handouts Summary Pigmentation means coloring. Skin pigmentation disorders affect the color of your skin. Your skin gets its color from a pigment called melanin. Special cells in the skin make melanin.

When these cells become damaged or unhealthy, it affects melanin production. Some pigmentation disorders affect just patches of skin. Others affect your entire body. If your body makes too much melanin, your skin gets darker. Pregnancy, Addison's disease, and sun exposure all can make your skin darker. If your body makes too little melanin, your skin gets lighter. Vitiligo is a condition that causes patches of light skin. Albinism is a genetic condition affecting a person's skin. A person with albinism may have no color, lighter than normal skin color, or patchy missing skin color. Infections, blisters and burns can also cause lighter skin. Start Here How Does Melanin Affect Your Health? | LIVESTRONG.COM How Does Melanin Affect Your Health? by JOE KING, M.S. Last Updated: Jul 28, 2011 Joe King, M.S. Joe King began writing fitness and nutrition articles in 2001 for the "Journal of Hyperplasia Research" and Champion Nutrition. As a personal trainer, he has been helping clients reach their fitness goals for more than a decade.

King holds a Bachelor of Science in kinesiology from California State University, Hayward, and a Master of Science in exercise physiology from California State University, East Bay. Melanin determines skin tone and has other effects on the body. Photo Credit Ralf Nau/Lifesize/Getty Images Melanin is a compound derived from the amino acid, tyrosine. It provides pigment to most animals, including humans. In people, melanin determines skin color. People with high amounts of melanin tend to have darker skin, whereas people with less melanin have lighter skin. Melanin is also important for many different aspects of human health and has a wide range of effects on your body. Albinism People with little to no melanin in their skin suffer from a condition called albinism and are known as albinos. Albinism results from a deficiency in the enzyme required to produce melanin, causing a lack of pigmentation of the skin, eyes, ears and hair. According to MayoClinic.com, people with albinism are at an increased risk for skin cancer because melanin acts as a natural sunblock, protecting your skin from the powerful UV rays of the sun.

Neuromelanin There are several forms of melanin in your body, including neuromelanin, produced in your brain. Scientists do no fully understand the function of neuromelanin; however, its production appears to increase as you age. According to the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, or ESRF, one proposed function of neuromelanin is that it helps your body maintain a balance of metals, assuring you do not have too much or too little in your blood stream, which can have negative consequences. Deafness Although not clearly understood, melanin appears to play a role in your ability to hear properly and is important for the overall function of your inner ear canal. According to a 1994 study published in the journal of "Pigment Cell Research," individuals who suffer hearing loss or are deaf lack adequate melanocytes, which are cells found throughout your body that are responsible for producing melanin. According to the researchers, a lack of melanocytes in the inner ear results in cochlear impairment, or hearing loss, although the reason is not clear. Vitamin Deficiency High levels of melanin in your body increase your risk for developing a vitamin D deficiency, according to Palomar College.

You obtain vitamin D primarily through sunlight. When you expose your skin to sunlight, the UV rays from the sun trigger vitamin D production in your body. Melanin blocks UV rays, leaving people with darker skin more susceptible to a vitamin D deficiency. This can cause other conditions such as rickets and osteoporosis. Related Searches Lose Weight. Feel Great Change your life with MyPlate by LIVESTRONG.COM GOAL Gain 2 pounds per week Gain 1.5 pounds per week Gain 1 pound per week Gain 0.5 pound per week Maintain my current weight Lose 0.5 pound per week Lose 1 pound per week Lose 1.5 pounds per week Lose 2 pounds per week GENDER Magic Melanin: Spreading Scientific Illiteracy Among Minorities - CSI Skeptic Authors Steven Salzberg and Joe Nickell to Receive Balles Prize in Critical Thinking June 14, 2013 Forbes columnist Steven Salzberg and author-investigator Joe Nickell will each be awarded the 2012 Robert P. Balles Prize in Critical Thinking, to be presented by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry at the CFI Summit in October.

Magic Melanin: Spreading Scientific Illiteracy Among Minorities Skeptical Inquirer Volume 16.2, Winter 1992 Afrocentric beliefs include a range of tenets. One of the fundamental ideas is that Egypt is the source of civilization and that during its glorious days Egyptians were black. For some, Egypt was the source for European civilization by way of the Greeks, a claim for which there is some evidence. More extreme proponents claim that Egypt was the source of the New World civilizations of Mesoamerica and the Andes as well as Chinese and Indian civilizations. These are claims for which there is no credible evidence. As described previously (Ortiz de Montellano 1991), these ideas are being taught in the several urban school districts that have adopted the Portland African-American Baseline Essays . The Science Baseline Essay (Adams 1990a) claims, among other things, that thousands of years ago Egyptians flew in gliders, electroplated gold, knew accurately the distance to the sun, and discovered the Theory of Evolution. The essay also claims that “the Ancient Egyptians were known the world over as the masters of ‘magic’ (psi).

precognition, psychokinesis, remote viewing and other undeveloped human capabilities.” Psi is proclaimed to be a scientific discipline that is studied in leading universities today (Adams 1990a: 41-42). In our society, science has replaced religion as the main source of explanation about the natural world. Consequently, people as diverse as Madison Avenue hucksters and New Age gurus know that claiming a scientific basis for a belief will make it easier to sell a product. Similarly, a particular group of African-Americans, sometimes called the “melanin scholars” or the “KMWR [pronounced khemware, after Kemet, the name for Egypt] Scientific Consortium,” is providing a “scientific” rationale for Afrocentricity. Some of the better-known members of the group are: Leonard Jeffries, professor of African-American studies at the City University of New York; Wade Nobles, professor of AfricanAmerican studies at San Francisco State University; Frances Cress Welsing, a Washington, D.C., psychiatrist; Richard King, a Los Angeles psychiatrist; and Hunter Adams, a technician at Argonne National Laboratory and author of the Portland Baseline Science Essay .

The group’s message is spread primarily by broadcasts on black radio stations of lectures given at annual melanin conferences. This method of dissemination makes documenting their assertions difficult; melanin scholars do not publish in journals or in easily accessible books. The main source of my information about this group is a number of lectures broadcast on the Detroit Public School’s educational station, WDTR 90.9 FM. The key idea of the melanin scholars is that melanin, a widely distributed pigment in the natural world, found in all humans, has a number of extraordinary properties that are best manifested in black people. They claim that melanin is a superconductor, that it absorbs all frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum, that it can convert sound energy to light energy reversibly, and that it can function as a minicomputer to process information. According to the group, in addition to the skin, hair, and eyes, melanin is widely dispersed in the human body, for example, in twelve sites in the brain, in all the major organs, and in all muscles. The group claims that melanin is involved in the regulation of all psychological and physiological processes of the human body.

They state that because of this people with high melanin levels have better muscular coordination (which makes them better athletes), are mentally superior, have unusual faculties, such as ESP, and are influenced by the magnetic fields of other humans and of the earth (Montgomery 1989). They attribute to melanin numerous other properties. Lectures about melanin are replete with scientific sounding terminology: substantia nigra, solitons, phonons, electromagnetic radiation, melanocyte, extrapyramidal tract, pineal gland, hypothalamus, and so on. This creates the impression that there is a scientific base for the claims. The alleged properties of melanin, mostly unsupported, irrelevant, or distortions of the scientific literature, are then used to justify Afrocentric assertions. One of the most common is that humans evolved as blacks in Africa, and that whites are mutants (albinos, or melanin recessives) (Welsing 1989; King 1991). No one disputes that humans evolved from Africa, but the rest of the statement profoundly distorts genetics. Afrocentrics treat skin color as if it was governed only by one gene, and thus subject to absolute Mendelian dominance / recessiveness.

If this were true, humans could only be black or white. However, skin color, like intelligence or height, is controlled by several genes, which explains why humans exhibit a wide color spectrum. Whites do not exhibit a total absence of melanin, but only a lesser amount. That is why whites can increase the amount of melanin in their skin by exposure to the sun. There is also no evidence that the amount of melanin in internal organs correlates with the amount of melanin in the skin. For example, the amount of melanin in the substantia nigra is normal in albinos (Siegel et al. 1989: 755). Welsing (1989; 1991) uses the notion of whites as melanin recessives to explain white racism on a “scientific” basis. She professes that white men have to destroy black men in self defense because black men have the potential to destroy white men genetically. According to Welsing, a white child can only be produced by having a white mother and father. She claims that all other combinations can only produce black children, and that black men are considered dangerous because they could force white women to have sex.

These ideas are easily acceptable in parts of the African-American community where there is broad support for theories that claim the existence of a conspiracy to destroy black males. The high rates of murder, of imprisonment, and of drug use, as well as the high rates of unemployment among black males, are cited as evidence for the conspiracy. The seemingly scientific explanation and academic credentials of some of the speakers are impressive to audiences uneducated in science. This appealing “scientific” explanation for white racism, in turn, makes other melanin claims more likely to be accepted. For example, Barnes (1990) argues that cocaine is part of the racist plot because melanin and cocaine are both alkaloids and have a high affinity for each other. Barnes also claims that blacks can test positive for cocaine even a year after its most recent use, because cocaine co-polymerizes into melanin. Melanin is not an alkaloid and there is no evidence whatsoever for melanin co-polymerizing with cocaine in vivo. The idea that melanin is an essential component of humanity and that it confers many desirable powers is expanded by others into classical racism.

Wade Nobles (1989) states that whites stopped evolving with the development of the central nervous system (CNS), but that blacks continued to evolve an essential melanic system (EMS). From this he develops an “equation": CNS + EMS = HB (human being) - that is, whites are not fully human. Others, such as Richard King (1991), express the same idea by their repeated use of the term hueman instead of “human,” with the connotation that only people with color are truly human. The idea that people to be discriminated against are not fully human has always been used by racists as a justification for their actions. It is sad to see it being used by people who have suffered so much from racism themselves. The ideas of the melanin scholars are being spread in a much more insidious way. The melanin scholars are the theoreticians behind the Science Baseline Essay ; its author, Hunter Adams, is one of the principal members of the group. It is interesting, however, that Adams does not use melanin as the basis for many of his examples.

Maybe the claims for melanin are so radical that the association of the African-American Baseline Essays with melanin would hinder their adoption by school districts. However, many assertions in the Baseline Science Essay that seem incongruous or are asserted without any rationale can only be explained or put into context by referring to theories espoused by the “melanin scholars.” For example, the Essa y claims that Egyptians in antiquity were black, that Egyptians were far in advance of other civilizations, and that Egypt was the origin of most scientific inventions. The explanation of the melanin scholars for these statements, unstated in the essay, is that melanin confers a mental advantage upon its possessors. Because melanin is the reason for their achievements, it is essential that Egyptians be black. The claim in the Science Baseline Essay that Egyptians (i.e., blacks) have extrasensory powers is based on work by Frances Cress Welsing (1975). Welsing proposed that a correlation between high blood pressure and blackness of skin was due to the fact that melanin picks up energy vibrations from other people under stress. The darker the skin, the more melanin, and thus the more vibrations would supposedly be picked up.

In turn, this higher sensitivity to vibrations of others would lead to higher blood pressure in the recipients. Welsing (1989) expanded this idea to explain why George Washington Carver was so successful in discovering useful products from plants. According to Welsing, Carver owed his success not to his master’s degree in chemistry, but to the fact that he was very dark. She states that Carver discovered the components of plants and their uses because the plants “talked to his melanin and told him what they were good for” during his early morning strolls in the woods. The consequences of a wide acceptance of this notion by AfricanAmerican schoolchildren could be quite damaging. Children could reject appeals from teachers to study hard for years in order to be prepared to become scientists. Black children could respond that in order to be a scientist all they need do is “Let my melanin pick up the vibes.” Welsing (1989) also provides the explanation for another of the Baseline Essay ’s disturbing statements. Adams states that the Dogon of Mali discovered a dwarf companion of Sirius, Sirius B, which is invisible to the naked eye.

He also claims that they knew that it is extraordinarily dense and that it has an orbital period of 50 years (Adams 1990a: 60). Adams presents this theory without explanations or justifications, even though he is aware of Welsing’s explanation. This leaves the reader wondering how the Dogon were supposed to have accomplished these feats. According to Welsing, the Dogon’s melanin functions in a manner similar to an infrared telescope, and they were able to detect Sirius B through the melanin in their pineal glands. Welsing claims further that everything that happens on Earth is converted to energy and beamed up to Sirius B. She maintains that the high melanin content of black people enables them to tap into that information. She alleges that Greek oracles were black and that their melanin enabled them, as it does present-day blacks, to foresee the future. Adams (1990a) claims that astrology is scientific, but again does not provide an explanation. He presented his rationale in lectures at the 1987 Melanin Conference (Adams 1990b). The ability of melanin to absorb and respond to magnetic fields is a key component of his explanation of astrology.

Adams also claims “that movement [magnetic motion] is reflective of the movement of the sun, moon, planets, and stars. Thus, at birth, every living thing has a celestial serial number, or frequency power spectrum. This is the basis for astrology right here.” The melanin scholars have managed to avoid public scrutiny because of the manner in which their message has been disseminated. Leonard Jeffries has aroused the most publicity because of his position in media intensive New York City (see, e.g., Tierney 1991) and his propensity for openly racist statements. However, the racist views of this group can potentially increase further the racial hostility in this country by providing a supposed “scientific” rationale that in one stroke explains white oppression and the genetic superiority of blacks. As the theoreticians behind the Portland Baseline Essays , they can increase scientific illiteracy among those poor urban children who are most in need of better science teaching. These children do not need pseudoscience traveling under the guise of multiculturalism. References Adams, H. H. 1990a. African and AfricanAmerican contributions to science and technology. In African-American Baseline Essays . Portland, Ore.: Multnomah School District. —.

1990b. Lecture at the 1st Annual Melanin Conference, San Francisco, 1987; broadcast titled “African World View,” Melanin: The Chemical Key to Black Greatness . Houston, Tex.: C.B. Publishers. King, Richard. 1991. Lecture at the 5th Annual Melanin Conference, Los Angeles, April 19-21, 1991; broadcast titled “African World View,” The Risks of Tanning The Risks of Tanning , also called erythema, is one of the most obvious signs of UV exposure and skin damage. Often marked by redness and peeling (usually after a few days), sunburn is a form of short-term skin damage. Why it happens: When UV rays reach your skin, they damage cells in the epidermis. In response, your immune system increases blood flow to the affected areas. The increased blood flow is what gives sunburn its characteristic redness and makes the skin feel warm to the touch. At the same time, the damaged skin cells release chemicals that send messages through the body until they are translated as a painful burning sensation by the brain.

White blood cells, which help protect you from infection and disease, attack and remove the damaged skin cells. It is this process of removing damaged cells that can cause sunburned skin to itch and peel. Symptoms: The earliest signs of sunburn are skin that looks flushed, is tender or painful, or gives off more heat than normal. Unfortunately, if your skin tone is medium to dark you may not notice any obvious physical signs until several hours later. It can take 6 - 48 hours for the full effects of sunburn to appear. Treatment: The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) recommends treating mild sunburn with cool baths, over-the-counter hydrocortisone creams, and aspirin to ease pain and swelling. Severe sunburn should be treated as a medical emergency and examined by a doctor right away. Severe sunburn is often characterized by a large area of red, blistered skin with a headache, fever, or chills. The Bottom Line: Sunburn can be a very painful effect of UV exposure. Studies have shown a link between severe sunburn and melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. Pay careful attention to protecting yourself from UV rays.

Sun Tan What it is: There is no such thing as a safe tan. The increase in skin pigment, called melanin, which causes the tan color change in your skin is a sign of damage. Why it happens: Once skin is exposed to UV radiation, it increases the production of melanin in an attempt to protect the skin from further damage. Melanin is the same pigment that colors your hair, eyes, and skin. The increase in melanin may cause your skin tone to darken over the next 48 hours. Symptoms: Skin tones that are capable of developing a tan, typically skin types II through V, will probably darken in tone within two days. The Bottom Line: Evidence suggests that tanning greatly increases your risk of developing skin cancer. And, contrary to popular belief, getting a tan will not protect your skin from sunburn or other skin damage. The extra melanin in tanned skin provides a Sun Protection Factor (SPF) of about 2 to 4; far below the minimum recommended SPF of 15. Premature Aging What it is: Sometimes referred to as “photoaging,” premature aging is the result of unprotected UV exposure. It takes the form of leathery, wrinkled skin, and dark spots.

Why it happens: Although the causes of premature aging are not always clear, unprotected exposure to harmful UV rays break down the collagen and elastin fibers in healthy young skin, and cause wrinkles and loosened folds. Frequent sunburns or hours spent tanning can result in a permanent darkening of the skin, dark spots, and a leathery texture. Symptoms: Melanoma Non-melanoma Melanoma is the less common, but more dangerous form of skin cancer, and accounts for most of the deaths due to skin cancer each year. Melanoma is cancer that begins in the epidermal cells that produce melanin (melanocytes). According to the American Cancer Society (ACS) melanoma is almost always curable when detected in its early stages. and squamous cell carcinomas) occur in the basal or squamous cells located at the base of the epidermis, both inside and outside the body. Non-melanomas often develop in sun-exposed areas of the body, including the face, ears, neck, lips, and the backs of the hands. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), offers a checklist to help determine your risk of developing skin cancer: What is Your Risk? Checklist .

Why it happens: Predisposition to skin cancer can be hereditary, meaning it is passed through the generations of a family through genes. There is also strong evidence suggesting that exposure to UV rays, both UVA and UVB, can cause skin cancer. UV radiation may promote skin cancer in two different ways: By damaging the DNA in skin cells, causing the skin to grow abnormally and develop benign or malignant growths. By weakening the immune system and compromising the body’s natural defenses against aggressive cancer cells. Symptoms: Performing regular self skin cancer exams is a good way to protect yourself against skin cancer. The following are possible signs of skin cancer, and should be checked by a doctor. Any changes on the skin, especially in the size or color of a mole, birthmark, or other dark pigmentation Unexplained scaliness, oozing, or bleeding on the skin's surface A spot on the skin that suddenly feels itchy, tender, or painful Treatment: Skin cancer treatment varies depending on the type and severity of the cancer. Your doctor will develop a treatment plan based on your needs. The Bottom Line: According to the American Cancer Society, most of the more than one million skin cancers diagnosed each year in the U.S. are considered sun-related.

Skin cancer occurs in people of all skin tones, though it is less common in those with darker skin tones. Assessing your risk with the help of your doctor, protecting your skin, and performing regular skin cancer checks are the best methods of prevention. Actinic or Solar Keratoses What it is: A fourth type of growth, actinic or solar keratoses, is a concern because it can progress into cancer. Actinic keratoses are considered the earliest stage in the development of skin cancer, and are caused by long-term exposure to sunlight. They are the most common pre-malignant skin condition, occurring in more than 5 million Americans each year. Symptoms: Actinic or solar keratoses share some of the symptoms of skin cancer. Look for raised, rough-textured, or scaly bumps that occur in areas that have been sunburned or tanned. Treatment: Most cases of actinic keratoses are easily treated in a dermatologist’s office by removing them with liquid nitrogen or chemical peels. The Bottom Line: Actinic or solar keratoses are the most common pre-malignant skin condition. Check with your doctor if you find any suspicious-looking bumps.

Eye Damage - Photokeratitis What it is: Photokeratitis can be thought of as a sunburn of the cornea. It is caused by intense UVC/UVB exposure of the eye. Photokeratitis is also called “snow blindness” because many people develop this condition at high altitudes in a snowy environment where the reflections of UVB are high. This condition can also be produced by exposure to intense artificial sources of UVC/UVB, like broken mercury vapor lamps, or certain types of tanning lamps. Symptoms: are one form of eye damage that research has shown may increase with UV exposure. Clouding of the natural lens of the eye causing decreased vision and possible blindness are all effects of cataracts. Other types of eye damage include cancer around the eyes, macular degeneration , and irregular tissue growth that can block vision ( pterygium ). Consult your doctor if you experience any of the following symptoms. Clouded or spotty vision Pain or soreness in and around the eyes Treatment: Cataracts can be surgically removed. The Bottom Line: Wearing sun protection gear such as a wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses with 100% UV protection can help decrease the risks of eye damage.

More Information of the Effects of UV on the Eye Immune System Suppression According to the World Health Organization (WHO), all people, regardless of skin color, are vulnerable to the effects of immune suppression. Overexposure to UV radiation may suppress proper functioning of the body’s immune system and the skin’s natural defenses, increasing sensitivity to sunlight, diminishing the effects of immunizations or causing reactions to certain medications. In people who have been treated for an infection of the Herpes simplex virus, sun exposure can weaken the immune system so that it can no longer keep the virus under control. This results in reactivation of the infection and recurring cold sores. What is Melanin? What is Melanin? By Dr Ananya Mandal, MD Melanin is a complex polymer derived from the amino acid tyrosine. Melanin is responsible for determining skin and hair colour and is present in the skin to varying degrees, depending on how much a population has been exposed to the sun historically. Melanin synthesis Numerous steps are involved in the biosynthesis of melanin. The first step is catalysis of the chemical L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine by tyrosinase.

A lack of tyrosine can lead to albinism. Tyrosine is only found in a specialized cells called melanocytes, inside which tiny granules of melanin pigment are contained in vesicles called melanosomes. These melanosomes leave the melanocytes and move into other cells in the epidermis. Mostly brown or black in colour, melanin deposits determine the skin pigment which varies depending on the number and distribution of the melanosomes. Aside from determining skin colour, the light absorbent melanin protects the DNA against UV radiation from the sun and it is considered a potential candidate in melanoma treatment. Related Stories Melanin is found in several areas of the human body including: Skin where it provides skin color Hair Pupils or irises of the eyes Stria vascularis of the inner ear Areas of the brain, the substantia nigra and locus coeruleus The medulla and zona reticularis of the adrenal gland Types of melanin Some of the different types of melanin include eumelanin, pheomelanin and neuromelanin. Eumelanin is found in the hair, skin and dark areas around the nipples.

It is particularly abundant among black populations and provides black and brown pigment to the hair, skin and eyes. When eumelanin is present only in small amounts, hair may be blonde. Pheomelanin is also found in the hair and skin. This type of melanin provides pink and red colors and is the main pigment found among red-haired individuals. This type of melanin is not as protective against UV- radiation induced cancer as eumelanin. Neuromelanin is a form of melanin found in different areas of the brain and loss of this melanin may cause several neurological disorders.

Question: What in the human body shows the effect of melanin?
Answer: Skin