Experts warn of dangers of "skin whitener" cosmetics

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

HONG KONG, Sept 27: Liza Ng, a public relations executive living in Hong Kong, has no time or inclination to cultivate the sporty, tanned look.

Instead, she spends hundreds of dollars every month on face masks, scrubs and creams to whiten her complexion.

''I love to be pearly white because that is more beautiful,'' the 38-year-old said.

Ng is not alone.

Women across Asia pay exorbitant prices for cosmetics that promise to whiten their skin and give them a fair, frail look which for centuries has been considered a sign of beauty in women in China and across much of the region.

But the demand for skin-whitening cosmetics -- which can cost as much as 385 dollar for a 50-ml bottle -- has more than a monetary cost.

Health experts say that mercury -- a potentially deadly substance that helps to keep skin white -- has been found in a number of skin-whitening cosmetics.

''In Hong Kong, there are no strict rules for product labelling and you can buy cream that says it is mercury-free, but when we examine it, it is full of mercury,'' said Christopher Lam, a professor of chemical pathology at the Chinese University.

Lam, who also works at the Prince of Wales Hospital, said there have been isolated cases of mercury poisoning seen in women who used such creams.

''There may also be cases going to other doctors, not exclusively us,'' he added.

Mercury blocks an enzyme that is required for the formation of melanin, the dark pigment in our skin. But constant, heavy exposure to mercury is dangerous. It attacks the central nervous system and can result in brain and kidney damage.

TOXIC COSMETICS?

Questions about the safety of cosmetics came into focus last week when Chinese regulators said they found two toxic metals, chromium and neodymium, in nine SK-II products, a brand owned by Procter&Gamble. Three of the products purport to whiten skin.

The two metals are banned for use in cosmetics in China.

Chromium is carcinogenic and can cause eczema, while neodymium, which is used in magnets, can cause eye and skin irritation.

SK-II has said it does not add chromium, neodymium or other heavy metals into its products and was very concerned about the Chinese findings.

But it added that heavy metals exist in the environment, such as in the water and air. The company also said it would investigate if ''minimal trace levels of these heavy metals may be presented in the SK-II production process''.

Nevertheless, Procter&Gamble took its products off the shelves in China last Friday pending a probe by a Chinese health and safety watchdog to check whether its products carried possibly harmful metals.

While drugs are regulated and need to pass trials proving their efficacy and safety before they are sold, there is little governance over cosmetics even in more advanced places in Asia. ''There are no regulations requiring manufacturers to prove their cosmetics are effective, so you can claim anything you want,'' said Allen Chan, chemical pathology assistant professor at Chinese University.

In a study of 38 skin whitening creams in 2000, Lam and his colleagues found that eight of them contained excessive mercury. One exceeded limits used in the United States by 65,000 times. Five were made in China and three in Taiwan.

''When we did an x-ray of the offending cream, it didn't allow the x-ray to go through. It was radio-opaque,'' said pathologist Michael Chan at the Prince of Wales Hospital.

The experts called on consumers to be more sceptical about cosmetic company promises to whiten their skin.

''We do not know of any ingredient (used in cosmetics) that is effective and that has proven long-lasting effect in whitening the skin,'' said Lam. ''There is not much cosmetics can do to improve (whiten) the complexion.'' They called on consumers to use brands produced in countries with strict product labelling and which have good manufacturing practices, and to buy from reliable shops.

Governments must do their part, they said.

''We should have import restrictions. Imports without good, certified labels should not be allowed in,'' Lam said.

With manufactured skin-care products now under the microscope for traces of dangerous metals, women in Asia might find themselves turning to an age-old home remedy to temporarily whiten skin - yoghurt.

REUTERS

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