One of my favourite pastimes was to visit the National Library of Jamaica and research their early 20th century newspaper archives. It was like being transported to another world. It was gratifying and salacious to read what made the news back then.

Even more interesting were the advertisements and how they were presented.

I remember one in particular for “Gouraud’s Oriental Cream”, which read:

“Perfect shoulders and arms nothing equals the beautiful, soft, pearly white appearance. Gouraud’s Oriental Cream renders to the shoulders and arms. Covers skin blemishes. Will not rub off. Far superior to powders.

White-Flesh-Rachel.

10c for Trial Size

F T HOPKINS & SON

New York”

White Flesh Rachel? Something that gives a pearly white appearance and does not rub off at that time? Did they use “bleaching creams” back then? I had to find out more.

Ferdinand Hopkins developed this skin cream at the turn of the 20th century, falsely advertising it as a “magic beautifier”.

In 1907, Gouraud’s Oriental Cream was analysed by the state chemist of New Hampshire, where he detected the presence of mercury.

The same results were seen in another test in 1912. This 8-ounce bottle of Oriental Cream contained half an ounce of calomel (mercury chloride) suspended in water.

It would not be until 1936 before the formula was changed and the mercury chloride was removed.

According to the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) chief education officer, Ruth de Forest Lamb, in the Chamber of Horrors (1938), one woman who used the skin cream “developed dark rings around her eyes and neck, followed by bluish-black gums and loose teeth”.

You would think that with time things would change. Yet, over 100 years later, researchers who analysed over 100 popular skin-lightening or “whitening” products sold on platforms such as Amazon and eBay for mercury found that almost half of them contained mercury above legal limits. (Medical News Today, March 29, 2022)

So what does mercury chloride do to human skin?

First, as a heavy metal, mercury is highly toxic to humans and can cause severe health problems. Inorganic mercury toxicity may lead to nephrotic syndrome, decreased renal output, renal failure, and other severe health effects, affecting different parts of the nervous, digestive, and immune systems and organs, such as lungs, kidneys, skin, and eyes. The renal system is also critically affected following inorganic mercury exposure. (World Health Organization)

But because mercury is also a skin and mucous membrane irritant that is rapidly absorbed and inhibits or suppresses the formation of melanin, it results in a lighter skin tone.

However, this route of mercury exposure associated with the use of skin-lightening products may involve skin absorption and inhalation of mercury vapors, particularly with prolonged use, which is not only harmful to the primary user of the product but potentially harmful to members of the household, who might be at risk of exposure through the direct contact with contaminated items or inhalation of mercury vapors released from the products. (World Health Organization)

Globally, women of colour in every region of the world spend more than US$8 billion on bleaching creams annually. They have created a thriving global business in these skin-lightening creams and injectables, close to US$9 billion in 2020; US$2.3 billion of which was spent in the US market.

The global market size of skin-lightening products is predicted to reach US$16.08 billion by 2030.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 77 per cent of women in Nigeria use skin-lightening products, the world’s highest percentage. This is compared to 59 per cent in Togo, 35 per cent in South Africa, and 27 per cent in Senegal.

In Asia, this number is around 40 per cent. For example, a 2018 study in Mumbai, India, found that 54 per cent of respondents had used skin-lightening products at some point, and 38 per cent were using them.

On one of my trips to Lagos I visited one of the primary manufacturing plants that made these creams. The names of each product were quite interesting, as were the places on the body they were for. They were names like So White, So Lovely – Maxi Whitinizer Lotion, Knee & Elbow Whitening Cream, Knuckles & Black Spots, Sparkling White – Whitenizer Lotion, and Eskimo White. They even had the Toddlers & Teen Skin Lotion that “brightens and moisturizes”.

It is not clear if these products used mercury. Yet last year the National Agency for Food Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) in Nigeria declared the use of bleaching creams in the country as a severe national health emergency.

Here in Jamaica, I see so many of our women and men tearing up their skin by using harsh creams to lighten their complexion to the point where their faces look pink and raw, as if they were badly burned, with the removal of the top layer of their skin.

Many of them stay covered with long sleeves, socks, and broad hats in this summer heat so as not to expose their skin to the sun.

It is no secret that some of these “bleachers” live nocturnally and use home concoctions they mix themselves without a chemist’s or doctor’s supervision. Some of the bleaching cream mix-ups they create use chemical hair cream relaxers (used for permanently straightening hair curls) and other chemical creams and powders.

The effect? Harsh skin burns and the removal of melanin pigment.

What does melanin do? It provides pigmentation to your skin, eyes, and hair, which absorbs harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays and protects your body cells before they can damage the sensitive DNA of the skin cells.

If too much melanin pigment is removed from the skin, exposure to UV rays, whether from sunlight or tanning devices, is a risk factor for all types of skin cancer.

Therefore, while our black brothers and sisters convince themselves of the sociocultural and upward socio-economic mobility needs of why they need to lighten their skin, they must also seek the knowledge of how many of the chemical reagents they apply daily to their skin are harming their health and those around them with the absorption and inhalation of mercury and other toxic, harmful chemicals.

They should also understand that the skin is the largest organ in the body. The skin, called the integumentary system, forms a physical barrier between the external and internal environments. It protects and maintains your body from infection and injuries you could get from your external environment as it is your body’s coat of armor and the first line of defence against viruses, bacteria, and other microbes. It also shields your body from harmful light and helps regulate your body temperature.

So, for those who are dying to be “white” by using these harmful chemicals, maybe they should consider for one moment that they may actually be killing themselves in that bid.

Have a great week.

Lisa Hanna is Member of Parliament for St Ann South Eastern, People’s National Party spokesperson on foreign affairs and foreign trade, and a former Cabinet member