Mercury Found In Some Skin Lightening Creams

Photo Credit: BBC

A certain incident in Chicago has recently brought skin lightening to the front lines. Unfortunatley it is negative but it's something that should be discussed.

The FDA has pulled 50 skin lightening creams off the shelves in Chicago (mainly found in the China Towns or ethnic business districts) that contained very high and dangerous amounts of mercury. Mercury has very powerful melanin suppressing abilities, and can bleach skin very rapidly. It penetrates fast and deep within the skin and tissues causing severe kidney damage.

Five out of the fifty creams had 6000+ parts per million of mercury in them. That is absolutley insane and frightening, since an amount that high can cause so much damage to the kidney and overall toxicity.

No names have been given out yet (and trust me I'll be sure to post the names once (or if) they get revealed). I am sure these products will not be allowed to be shipped to North America, but a part of me knows how many of these companies or establishments work. There is always a chance for one of these creams to be placed on to the shelves, hidden away.

The testing of skin lighteners by the FDA is very sporadic. It's best not to rely on them, and rely more on ingredient lists and just the general 'vibe' or aura the skin lightening company presents. I tweeted about this today, but if a product looks risky or like a scam - chances are it is a scam, or an extremely dangerous substance that will lighten your skin, but cause some horrible side effects.

This investigation is solely focusing on mercury levels. I know that many of these creams which are imported from China, Lebanon, India and Pakistan also contain steroids as well as high levels (above 4%) of hydroquinone.

It's best to trust your instincts. It's very obvious when a product looks like it's going to be trouble. The way it is presented (crappy, makeshift packaging, odd fragrance etc.) Here at All About Skin Lightening, I only try to recommend (and I only use) products that I know are safe and come from companies that foster healthy and safe ingredients.

I think it's so unfortunate that the only news coverage that skin lightening gets is stuff like this: Skin bleaching creams that contain horrible ingredients that damage kindeys. I'm glad the investigation is happening though, and I hope that you all steer clear of these dodgy looking skin lightening creams found in many ethnic stores - especially people located in Chicago.

Be safe everyone. <3

News Source:

ChicagoTribune: FDA to investigate skin creams for mercury