To start with, variety is the spice of life, such as variety in food, clothes and hairstyles. Variety also abounds in nature. That is why all people on Earth belong to different types of skin colours. Our living environment accounts for the different skin colours we have. For example, in cold climatic regions such as Europe, inhabitants tend to have a lighter complex due to the cold weather, whereas in Africa, darker skin is better suited in the hot and humid climate.
It has been discovered that most African women are not proud of their dark skin, they feel inferior when they see people of light skins. In a bid to look white, they use bleaching creams and the question is, is fairer skin really more appealing than darker skin.
Bleaching creams work by stripping the skin of its natural pigmentation. However, in dark skinned people, the pigmentation is the skin’s natural protection from the sun. Bleaching doesn’t just superficially lighten the skin, it alters the skin’s ‘natural’ structure, removing and inhibiting the production of the colour creating melanin.
Once the skin has been ‘bleached’ it loses its natural protective barrier, making it susceptible to damage by the sun’s rays. This is also why many bleaching products contain either sunscreen, or come with instructions advising people to use sun protection creams along with the product. Prolonged use of these bleaching products can also prevent the formation of melanin in the deeper basal layers of the skin, which will leave the skin lighter, but also leave it more vulnerable to damage. People who use bleaching products can end up with rough and blotchy skin, and then get caught up in the ‘bleaching trap’ by using more cream to try and correct the problem, and by doing so, find themselves causing even more damage to their skin.
While skin lighteners can deliver the clearer, brighter skin they hope for, they can also bring other problems. The steroids sometimes used in lightening creams may whiten skin, but they often cause acne or other skin problems. Clobetasol propionate, one powerful steroid found in some skin lighteners, can cause skin irritation and acne, but it has farther-reaching implications. Long-term use may cause your body to stop production of its own steroids, lead to hypertension or elevate blood sugar.
Thinning skin, which can cause stretch marks, is another potential side effect. Thin skin may also result in easy bruising and cause the red capillaries under the skin to become visible. There is also the chance of an allergic reaction to a topical medication, which could include a rash or reddened skin, as well as lesions or flaking
Moreso, bleaching creams contains two powerful chemicals, Hydroquinone and mercury. These chemicals are very dangerous to the health.
Hydroquinone, which has now been used as a bleaching agent, came by accident in the thirties when some African American employees found that spots of discolouration appeared on their skin. It was also used then to clear injury spots. The chemical substance responsible for it is Monobenzyl Ether of Hydroquinone mostly called Monobonzone. Monobonzone thus became a newly discovered bleaching agent. However the daughter molecule of Hydroquinone later replaced it as it caused spots of depigmentation all over even in unapplied places.
Hydroquinone was also used in the rubber industry as an antioxidant, and as an agent in hair dyes. Due to its acidic effect, it has been found to damage the connective tissue in the skin and cartlilage.
Mercury is another potentially risky ingredient often found in skin lighteners. Mercury has been linked to many illnesses, including Alzheimers, polycystic ovary syndrome, and neurological dysfunctions. It is known to have serious effects on the central nervous system, as well. It is easily absorbed through the skin, and is not readily expelled by the body. This means that, over time, you could build up a mercury level that could lead to toxicity. Some states, such as Minnesota, have banned the sale of all cosmetics containing mercury.
Also, mercury can cause skin poisoning, mercury in creams can start accumulating in the cells of the body. Too much mercury exposure, or poisoning, can lead to liver damage and kidney failure.
Generally, Hydroquinone and mercury cause skin to be hyper-sensitive to sun rays. Again, Poisoning, convulsions, asthma, leukaemia, liver damage, anaphylactic shock and infertility are not conditions normally associated with cosmetics. However, prolonged use of certain cosmetic creams, which contain these two harmful chemical substances, has been linked with all of the above.
Most importantly, Skin bleaching must not be used during pregnancy or breastfeeding. The cream can get into the mother's bloodstream and travel to the fetus, thereby and poisoning the baby in the womb.
Often time, beauticians and doctors advise that by eating healthily, exercising and using body cream rich in Vitamin E, Aloe Vera and Collagen Elastin will produce more fascinating effects than applying mere bleaching creams because the negative effects of skin bleaching is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to reverse.
Many use bleaching creams without knowing that if they maintain their dark skins, it is good for their health. Black skin renews itself quickly, rapidly producing new skin cells, this ability for regeneration keep our skin’s looking younger for longer. However, in Africa dark women bleach their skin in the misguided belief that a lighter complexion is better but should change their belief and have the mentality that black is beautiful.
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