If You Notice a Dark Ring Around Your Neck, Go See Your Doctor Immediately! This Is What It Means

Obesity rates have been on the rise over the last decade. In fact, there are more and more cases of children and teenagers being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes than ever.

14-year-old Pantera learned this the hard way when she began to notice the following changes in her health:

– She was thirsty all the time.
– She suffered from headaches and mood swings.
– And last but not least, she had a dark-colored ring around her neck.

This ring wasn’t just a random skin issue. According to Dr. Alyne Ricker, a pediatric endocrinologist at the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, this type of darkening—called acanthosis nigricans—can be an early warning sign of insulin resistance. “When your body starts pumping out too much insulin—which is common with type 2—receptors in the skin folds respond by making extra pigment,” Dr. Ricker explains.

These patches of dark skin can show up not only on the neck, but also under the arms, between the thighs, around the fingers and toes, and even on the elbows or knees.

Doctors say that if you see this ring, then there’s a really good chance that your insulin isn’t working optimally. And if you’re insulin isn’t working smoothly, then you have higher chances of developing type 2 diabetes.

Watch the video below to see what this dark ring looks like… (at the bottom of the article)