It’s been known for a while that skin lightening is not a risk-free procedure, and many skin experts are actively recommending against the operation, unless performed in a controlled environment by a certified professional. And yet, culture values light skin over darker tones in some parts of the world, and the companies in the skin lightening industry have taken notice of that and shifted their business to focus on those areas.
Now, the situation in countries like India has reached dangerous levels, as we’ve been hearing more and more reports of people going to alarming lengths in order to make their skin look brighter. Most recently, we’ve been hearing about a drug named Glutathione starting to become more and more prominent among people seeking skin lightening.
The drug was originally meant for use by cancer patients going through chemotherapy, as it apparently counteracts some of the negative effects of chemo. At the same time, it can also have skin lightening properties, which is mostly a side effect. Because of this, people have been seeking out the drug more and more actively, and using it for the sole purpose of skin lightening.
The problem is that skin lightening is far from the only side effect of the drug, as is the case with many types of cancer medications. Kidney damage, thyroid problems and toxic epidermal necrolysis are just some of the potential problems that have been named, and the FDA is apparently well aware of the drug and constantly watching it on the market.
Still, despite the fact that the drug isn’t very cheap either, people in India have been buying it at alarming rates, and there doesn’t seem to be an indication that this craze will die down anytime soon. Now we’ve reached a peculiar situation – this problem could be controlled a bit by tightening the grip on the market control for this drug, but on the other hand this will likely have negative consequences for actual cancer patients who need it for legitimate reasons.
What’s the right answer then? Nobody seems to know – but the alarming nature of skin lightening has been in the news more and more often lately, and it’s good that people are at least starting to notice there is a problem.
Advertising skin lightening products is also something that has to be controlled more tightly, according to some observers of the situation, as the companies themselves have been trying quite hard to keep people believing that lighter skin is better for them. An entire new sector of the advertising industry has spawned from this in some places, and these marketers don’t seem to be stopping anytime soon, at least as long as what they’re advertising remains popular.