What are the differences between bleaching creams and lightening creams? Or are they all the same?

Well, it seems 'bleaching' creams may cause psychiatric problems, in addition to ruining your skin in the long run, causing skin cancer and giving you kidney problems.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC  expressed concern over the alarming use of bleaching creams and skin whitening agents.

It equally warned against the continued use of banned chemicals by unscrupulous cosmetics manufacturers. NAFDAC warned that such chemicals, aside from causing cancer, could lead to psychiatric and kidney problems.

Director-General of the agency, Dr. Paul Orhii, said the use of glutathione intravenous as a skin whitener was unsafe and might result in serious consequences, including cancer.

He expressed concern that the urge to satisfy customers’ ever-increasing demands and the bid to make profits had driven some cosmetics manufacturers into experimenting with raw materials with little or no safety records.

He said: “Skin bleaching is a cosmetic treatment to reduce the prominence of skin discolourations and even out skin colour.

“Some people apply skin lightener to their entire body to change their complexion, but this can be very risky. The active ingredient in some skin lighteners is mercury and so bleaching can lead to mercury poisoning.”

Vanguard.

So sisters and brothers, if you must bleach your skin, or lighten {whenever I hear 'bleach', Jik and Hypo come to mind} or whatever they call it, please have this article at the back of your mind.