Skin Whiteners

Skin whitening is a craze that has been around for years, which had started in ancient Japan and China. There was a saying that was passed on through many generations that went like this “one white covers up three ugliness”. This was believed for many years. A complexion that was white was known as aristocratic and noble. The rich used to stay indoors so the sun would not brown their skin. Christopher Lam Wai-kei, a Professor at a Chinese University stated that Chinese used to grind up seashell pearls into powder and consume it to whiten their skin. In a recent research it is shown that close to half of Asians use skin whiteners. The ages in that pole ranged from 25 years to 34 years old. It is popular in Africa, Asia and Arabia to lighten their pigmentation.

The breakdown of melanin by enzymes is the mechanism of permanent whitening. Melanin is the pigment that causes the skin to be dark. The darker the skin the more melanin is produced in the body.

There are several remedies to whiten and lighten the skin pigmentation. These remedies are available for people that have unwanted pigmentation of the skin, to help lighten the uneven color. Regardless of what race you are, most people have a skin discoloration that they want to get rid of. Whether it be a birth mark, a mole, age spot, vitiligo, or just a dark colored person that wants a lighter pigmented skin; there are plenty of ways to lighten and whiten your skin.

The treatments that are used to reduce some of the production of melanin are to inhibit tyrosinase. Many of these treatments are a combination of lotions that contain the melanin reduction ingredients along with sunscreen and a special prescription called retinoid. There are also chemical peels, exfoliants and lasers that can be used. We are going to look at the most common remedies used to whiten the skin which includes whitening pills, whitening creams and also homemade remedies.

Skin whitening creams help to lighten the skin tone. These creams help to remove blemishes, dark spots on skin and unwanted pigmentation when used regularly for a certain period of time.

Some skin whitening creams have an extract in them called extrapone nutgrass. This extract has the ability to lighten the skin tone without any type of side effect. Other ingredients that should be in skin whitening creams should be avocado oil, Cynergy TK, Eyeliss, Shea butter, grape seed oil, Phytessence Wakame, active manuka honey, and Homeo age. These special ingrediants are known to not cause any skin problems and able to treat the skin condition.

Hydroquinone is a topical remedy that is referred by most dermatologists. The topical treatment is hydroquinone alone or is combined with tretinoin. There has been research done that has shown that hydroquinone and tretinoin is a powerful treatment against sun induced melasma. Hydroquinone is sold and prescribed not to exceed 2 percent. Tretinoin alone has shown to be useful to treat hyperpigmentation.

There is also another topical treatment known as azelaic acid. This treatment has been shown by research that in 15%-20% concentrations to be just as efficacious as hydroquinone is.

Vitamin C and some plant extracts have been researched and shown to inhibit melanin production.

Niacinamide is another resource for a cream treatment. It is said from a cosmetic company that niacinamide has no side effects. It has shown to reduce acne, provide moisture to the skin and reduces fine lines and wrinkles.
Mercury is used in many topical whitening agents. It is stated such as the active ingredient named ammoniated mercury or mercury chloride.

Alpha hydroxyl acids are in the primary form of glycolic acid and lactic acid. These acids have molecular size that penetrates deeply into the top layers of skin. These types of acids has been researched and shown that they inhibit melanin production and can be as an exfoliant to the skin.

Arbutin are from leaves of berry shrubs that include cranberry, blueberry, bearberry, mulberry and in some types of pears. These leaves contain inhibiting production of melanin in them. Experts are not sure as of yet how much arbutin it takes to whiten the skin. Arbutin is used in cosmetics that contain plant extract.

Skin Whitening pills were discovered back in the 1960’s by a clinical dermatology research team in Japan.The goal was to find a skin whitening product that would help dark skinned individuals to get a lighter tone without having to use any creams with chemicals. These pills help slow down melanocytes production which gives the dark melanin pigments to the skin color. The whitening pills evenly lightens the whole complexion evenly. Even under the arms and the area of the bikini line. The whitening pills have also shown to clear away all acne and any pigmentation marks. The pills transform any type of dark pigment into a lighter shade.

The main ingredient in the whitening pill is glutathione. It is an antioxidant that protects any free radicals to enter the cells. Free radicals damage the skin and glutathione is known to reverse the effect of the damage.

Vitamin C is another additive in whitening pills. Vitamin C is another antioxidant that assists in treatment of the anti aging process. It increases the production of glutathione, which our body naturally produces. Zinc aspartate is a smaller component that helps increase the metabolic process.