Illegal skin lightening products discovered in South Wales shops
An ITV Wales This Week investigation has found shops across South Wales selling skin lightening creams with an illegal and potentially harmful ingredient.
The products contain hydroquinone, a chemical that should only be prescribed by a doctor.
Our undercover reporters discovered shops in Newport and Cardiff selling products from the American skincare company Clear Essence. The packaging lists hydroquinone as an active ingredient.
Consultant dermatologist Dr Maria Gonzales said: 'You wouldn't recommend somebody use hydroquinone consistently and continuously for more than let's say six months because it can be quite irritant.
'You can get frank eczema from using it for long periods. And a lot of patients who use it excessively walk around with very red and inflamed skin…
'An odd complication of hydroquinone, very rare but can happen and I have seen it, is excessive use of it can actually cause this blue black pigmentation which is very, very hard to treat and remove and sits quite deep in the skin. It's called ochronosis.'
According to the Local Government Association, long term exposure to hydroquinone can cause liver and kidney damage.
Dr Gonzales, from the Specialist Skin Clinic in Cardiff, explained there are further risks to buying illegal skin lightening creams.
She said: 'There are lots of risks to buying something that is already illegal because you can't even track it and say, you know, is this actually what's in there? These could be ingredients that are much higher.
'We've seen in the past hydroquinone being sold at very high concentrations where they cause a lot of irritancy, 10%, even 15% in some cases.
'Is there a strong steroid in here that's not mentioned? So there are lots of risks to buying something that is already illegal because you can't even track it and say, is this actually what's in there? You can't rely on it.'
We approached Clear Essence and the Cardiff shop for a response but we received no comment.
13% of people of colour we surveyed felt pressured to lighten their skin.
We surveyed 100 Welsh people of colour to ask about their experiences with skin lightening. 11% said they had lightened their skin and even more felt pressured to do so.
One of those is Afrobeats singer Samantha from Cardiff. She has been using skin lightening products since she was in school.
She said: 'Skin lightening products have always been around me, it's very common. In my local beauty shop, it's definitely there, it's just something you see, like your toothbrush, your toothpaste, it's just one of those products.
'I grew up using those kinds of products and was often told by family members, friends, you do these kinds of things to enhance your beauty.
'Going to school, just like anything, sort your hair out, put a little bit on. It's that everyday kind of usage that you don't realise until later in life that you're actually implementing something quite poisonous.
Samantha added: 'Growing up, I had a lot of racism come towards me because of my colour. It's definitely an image that is scarred deeply into my mind.'
Samantha said using lightening creams has caused her skin to be 'permanently sensitive' and led to her seeking medical support.
'With these kinds of products, you get lots of burns and irritation, your skin gets sensitive. It's really damaging to the body and quite a few different kinds of products I've used previously I've had to go get checked out with the doctor.'
Samantha battled with quitting the products and said it impacted her mental health. But finally, she managed to give them up.
'I wanted to take back my power. I wanted to say, I don't need anything different apart from what I was born with. And this product is actually stealing my glory, stealing that passion away. I should be proud of myself instead of doing things to benefit someone else.'
Although her journey with skin lightening creams has come to an end, Samantha knows some friends and family members who are still using them.
'In the black community, that internalised racism is still something that we will have to fight for many years to change. It's rooted in the way you think and the way you breathe.'
Her message to anyone who is considering lightening their skin is, 'just to accept who you are, because sometimes that's the best version of you.'
Dr Gonzales said she hopes in her lifetime she will see a change in the number of people who lighten their skin.
'Making things illegal doesn't necessarily deal with the cultural pressures on people. These are minority communities so they want to fit in so it really is down to us in the community and everyone to understand how these pressures play out.
'I would say the motivation is to improve your life, unfortunately that comes along with looking a particular way and in certain societies that means having fairer skin and how do you deal with that?
'I really hope in my lifetime I see it improve.'
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