Why Do Some Obese People Have Dark Necks? Here’s The Causes, Treatments, Prevention

Do you have obese friends or relatives? And do obese people around you have dark necks? Maybe most people would think that dark neck in a fat person is grime, but it’s not. Some people will even feel disgusted or think that their neck is dirty if they see the fat man’s dark neck. 

However, if obese people around you have a dark necks then you should not feel disgusted because it’s not grime or dirt on someone’s body. Instead, it could be a sign of an illness.

Causes of Dark Necks in People with Obesity

Did you know that if a fat person has dark neck, then it is likely the person has diabetes. In medical term, this condition of darkening neck is called Acanthosis nigricans. Acanthosis nigricans is a disorder that occurs on the skin (usually neck skin in obese people) which velvety texture and has a brown to black color almost resembling grime.

1. Acanthosis nigricans can indicate several medical symptoms

Why do some obese people have dark necks? Acanthosis nigricans it could be a congenital skin disorder, meaning that since birth one’s already has dark neck skin. As someone get older, the skin color of the neck will be even darker if the weight is getting out of control.

2. Acanthosis nigricans may be a result of obesity or due to abnormalities of the endocrine glands

Endocrine glands are one type of hormone glands that produces hormone which task is controlling one’s appetite and controlling body weight. These two things are interrelated aspects. If the endocrine gland has an abnormality, it could enhance one’s appetite to an excessive direction. So, it is possible for the person to be overweight and have a dark neck. 

3. Indication of Diabetes

Again, this disease is closely related to one’s weight. Usually the more a person’s weight the more vulnerable for them to get diabetes. Acanthosis nigricans shows the resistance of the skin to insulin which causes the epidermic proliferation and resulting keratinocytes (darker color) in the outer skin layer.

It is also increasingly supported by research stated that obese people usually have higher insulin levels compared to people with normal weight. In addition to dark color on the neck, diabetes can also be characterized by several symptoms such as frequent thirst and frequent urination, easy hunger, weight loss, susceptibility to disease, impaired vision (blurred vision), and tingling.

4. Addison’s Disease

One of the symptoms/signs that appear in patients with Addison disease is darkened skin, including the neck skin. Addison disease is a condition which adrenal gland is unable to produce certain types of hormones in sufficient quantities. 

This disease mostly occurs in people between 30 to 50 years old. Apart from the darkening of the skin, another symptom that marks Addison’s disease is fatigue, decreased appetite, low blood sugar, back pain, loss of consciousness, and dehydration.


5.   Hypothyroidism.

Why do some obese people have dark necks? Hypothyroidism is a disorder that attacks the thyroid gland (most refer to goiter). One of the symptoms shown by hypothyroidism is darkening of the skin and the skin becomes dry. 

Besides being characterized by dry and dark skin, hypothyroidism is also characterized by fatigue, constipation, muscle aches, irregular menstruation, and hair loss. It is also essential for you to know the proven ways to prevent thyroid gland disorder as a precaution.

Of the various factors that cause dark neck skin in obese people, usually diabetes is the main cause. So, for people who are overweight and have a dark neck they are most likely to have diabetes. This situation can be more risky when some family members also suffer from diabetes. 

If you have a child who is overweight and has a dark neck, you should be vigilant. It could be that your child has diabetes. Early diagnosis needs to be done to ensure the child’s condition so that prevention and treatment can be done as soon as possible.

How to Get Rid of the Dark Neck

Dark neck in obese people can be caused by various factors. If it’s caused by diabetes, then to remove the dark neck is by giving treatment to the illness or the disease. Handling diabetes is one of them, by regulating diet and weight control.


Try to always consume foods with controlled sugar levels to avoid dangers of excessive sugar consumption. In addition, try to make your body weight normal. Do regular exercise so that your weight is controlled and blood flow in your body improved.

Apart from diabetes, there are still other factors that cause the neck to be dark. It could occur due to fungal and bacterial infections. Besides that, sunlight can also be one of the factors. If the neck skin darkens due to fungal or bacterial infections and various factors from outside the body, then there are a few tips that you can try to remove dark neck, including:

  • Using aloe vera can be an alternative to brighten dark skin on the neck. Aloe vera is also believed to be one effective ways to make face glowing. Aloe vera is very rich in antioxidants which are good for forming new skin cells and preventing infections in the skin. Brightening black skin using aloe vera can be done by applying aloe vera gel and then let it sit for about 20 minutes. Then wash it with water afterwards. For maximum results, this method can be done every day. 
  • The next way is to use cucumber and lemon. Lemon is known to be one of many natural ways to lighten skin tones. The method used is to mix cucumber juice (shredded cucumber) with lemon water. Then, apply the mixture on the dark neck, and let it sit for 10 minutes or wait for it to dry up. After that, washed using cold water. But don’t use the lemon as skin mask excessively to avoid the effects of using lemon mask every day.
  • The next natural ingredient that can be used to brighten the dark skin of the neck is orange peel. Not only that, orange peel is also believed to be one recommended ways on how to smooth rough facial skin. The trick is to dry the orange peel. Then, the dried orange peel is grated into powder and mixed with milk. A mixture of both is applied to the dark neck and left it sit for 10 minutes. After that, wash the neck using cold water.
  • Another way to lighten the neck skin is to use olive oil. Since long time ago, olive oil is believed to one natural ingredients to treat skin beauty and health. It can be drink directly and give healthy benefits of drinking olive oil every day. Olive oil can be used to brighten the dark neck skin by applying it to the neck. Another way to do this is to mix olive oil with lemon juice. Both are efficacious to maintain healthy skin and speed up the process of skin lightening. 

Those are some natural methods that can be done to brighten the dark skin of the neck. Dark neck skin in obese people can be caused by 2 factors, namely factors from the inside and the outside. Factors from the inside could be because of certain diseases, such as diabetes. 

While external factors can be due to bacterial and fungal infections or sunburn. If the cause of dark neck is illness in our body, it is better to take medical action. If the neck is darken due to external factors, treatment can be done using natural ingredients.

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Kategori : Skin Health