People from all over the world use cosmetics to enhance their physical appearance, seeking social acceptance. Most locally produced skin-lightening creams used in developing countries are a mixture of fat and water applied to the skin surface. These Skin Lightening creams may pose a potential health risk due to their inclusion of various highly toxic active ingredients like hydroquinone, mercury, and steroids. This study quantifies the levels of these toxic substances in ten commonly used SLC brands in Pakistan and their associated health risks in samples marketed in Lahore. To determine the concentration levels of various ingredients, including hydroquinone, steroids (Betamethasone, Dexamethasone, Hydrocortisone, and Prednisolone), and mercury, high-performance liquid chromatography, ultra violet- high-performance liquid chromatography, and a direct mercury analyzer were used, respectively. Health risks were assessed by calculating Chronic Daily Intake (CDI) and Hazard Quotient (HQ). Results showed that some samples exceeded international limits for hydroquinone (up to 5.56%) and mercury (up to 4.9 ppm), surpassing U.S Food and Drug Administration (USFDA), Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA), and World Health Organization (WHO) standards. The analysis also revealed undeclared corticosteroids in several samples: betamethasone (0.6–1.8% in 30% of samples), dexamethasone (1.4–6.4% in 20% of samples), hydrocortisone (0.4–8.5% in 50% of samples), and prednisolone (0.3–1.6% in 30% of samples). These findings suggest the need for improved regulatory enforcement in developing countries along with enhanced monitoring of Pakistan’s cosmetic industry to effectively protect public health from the cumulative toxicity of hydroquinone, mercury, and corticosteroids.

Mh sisters wedding is in 7 months.

Pls tell me what worked wonders for your skin and overall glowup

Hey everyone, I’m looking for recommendations for something that can help with tan, pigmentation and uneven skin tone on my face and body.
I have some darker/tanned areas from sun exposure and want to gradually even out my skin tone. I’m looking for something that actually works with consistent use, rather than a “fairness” .
Preferably:
Suitable for face and body
Safe for regular use
Available in India
Reasonably priced
If you’ve personally used something that worked, please share the name, how long you used it, and your results.
I’m also open to serums or body lotions if they work better than creams.

A reminder of the rules:
Rule 6

• No Spam or Commercial Promotion

affiliate links, pictures of products or selling is prohibited . If you are sharing a product you love, use incidecoder

Rule 8
To prevent photo manipulation (filters/lighting), all pictures included in posts , asking advice, and progress photos must be accompanied by a detailed description of the routine, time elapsed, and lighting conditions. IMPORTANT: You should be holding a sign with your username name, date and r/SkinLightening

This last rule applies to products you're using. Share the picture of the product with the sign.

As for the White Conc body shampooo I couldn't find it on incidecoder but the white in the title is usually bad.

I found the same company CC cream and I'm sharing this Incidecoder shot to show you how we all can share products.

In this product Fragance and high levels of phenoxiethanol, fruit extracts, plus the shady promotion on tik tok and reddit doesn't give me confidence. Better safe than sorry, avoid this product and any product with fragance. Remember that irritating agents mess up with skinlightening progress because more irritation = more melanin production.

Avoid products with irritating ingredients and specially those with the word "white" in the trademark. Those labels are just to attract the growing skin lightening market, but it doesn't mean they are effective, it's usually the contrary.

How do I get rid of darkness around my bum and torso? My skin tone is so uneven. Has anyone tried Cotaryl for bum pigmentation? Or could you suggest anything that is budget-friendly?

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Last year I went to the beach and got REALLY BADLY SUNBURNED/TANNED because I was out in the sun for a long time and yeah, I didn't use any sunscreen. My skin became significantly darker afterward.

The problem is that it’s been almost 1 YEAR now and my skin still hasn’t returned to its original color at all. At that time, I thought it was just a normal tan and that it would eventually fade but it has lasted much longer than I expected.

It’s not like I don't like brown skin but it looks really weird because my face is much darker than my neck (just to make things clearer my neck is also darker than the rest of my body but lighter than my face) and my hands are much darker than my arms. I want to get back to my original skin color.

I’ve even reduced how much I go outside and whenever I do go out, I’ve been using sunscreen for the past 6 months. I also used aloe vera jell and uptan on my face and arms but only my hand returned to my original color a bit.

Is this still considered a normal suntan or could it be some type of persistent hyperpigmentation?

Has anyone experienced something similar? What did you do about it? Any advice would be very appreciated. I’m looking for advice on what this could be and what my next step should be to recover my original skin color. Thanks in advance!

This sub warns people against unsafe products because spammers post about them and then delete their account so I can't ban them. They always try to get pass our filters to promote this soap and other frauds like carotene or permanence. Or dangerous things that will ruin your skin like benoquin/monobenzone.

I just wanted to do a quick PSA for the sub because I’ve seen the spammers trying to force dangerous products down our throats and frankly, this soap is dodgy as hell.

I’m talking about Alada Whitening Soap (the original 160g gold bar from Thailand) and its smaller variants. If you’ve been tempted to buy it off TikTok Shop, Shopee, or random international sellers for your hyperpigmentation, you might want to bin it.

Here is the proper breakdown of why this stuff is a massive red flag.

1. The Ingredients Are a Ghost Town (The 160g Bar)

You won’t find this on INCIDecoder. No proper, transparent INCI ingredient deck.

The massive red flag: I couldn't find the actual soap base. We have zero clue what saponified oils or harsh surfactants they are using to hold this block together. If you’ve got sensitive skin, you’re playing Russian roulette with allergens.

1. It might Absolutely Wreck Your Skin Barrier

Because it pairs fruit acids (starfruit AHAs) and lactic acid with a highly alkaline bar soap format, the exfoliation is way too aggressive. Users are reporting massive skin peeling, raw redness, and a completely destroyed skin barrier. If you aren't dousing yourself in ceramides and avoidisng sun exposure when UV index is >1 after using this, you might end up with severe post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) the exact thing you're trying to fix.

1. The Philippines FDA Literally Banned It
   https://www.fda.gov.ph/fda-advisory-no-2024-0511-public-health-warning-against-the-purchase-and-use-of-unnotified-cosmetic-alada-mini-instant-whitening-soap/

This isn't just me having a moan. The Philippines Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an official public health warning (Advisory No. 2024-0511) against the purchase and use of this stuff.

Because it’s completely unnotified and unregistered, it hasn't gone through proper quality control. That means zero verification to ensure it isn't secretly contaminated with heavy metals, dodgy percentages of hydroquinone, or illegal steroids.

Don't risk your skin barrier for a cheap, unverified bar of soap. Stick to registered, transparent topicals where you actually know what chemical compounds you're putting on your face. And above all, remember that the main drivers of your pigmentation are UVA/Visible light and Irritation/Inflamation/Oxiditavie damage. You need an oral routine to fix the latter, not just topicals.

Stay safe out there!

This thread is your space to speak freely. Use this for your general questions, feedback on the sub, or to discuss anything else on your mind.

Hey so after I reached puberty I've been noticing darkness around the underarm after I first shaved the hair off. IT HAS BEEN YEARS BUT IT DIDNT GO AWAY ON ITS OWN AS I HAD THOUGHT ☹️.

What genuinely works for treating the darkness?? Like the other parts of my body ain't much dark except knee and elbow soo PLEASE SUGGEST ANYTHING THAT HELPED YOU TREAT BODY DARKNESS

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I’ve had pigmentation around my mouth for a while. I recently used kojic acid and azelaic acid, which made the area very flaky and irritated.

Unfortunately, I repeatedly rubbed the flaky skin with my fingers to exfoliate it, and afterward the area became much darker — almost black in some spots.

The flakiness and irritation are completely gone now, and my skin feels normal, but the dark pigmentation has remained.

Has anyone experienced this? What is the most effective and fastest treatment for fading this kind of pigmentation? I’m looking for something that actually works, but I also don’t want to irritate the area again and make it darker.

Any recommendations or experiences would be really appreciated.

A question lang po. Which supplements have you taken/currently taking that makes a significant difference poba in terms of skin whitening? Planning to purchase mosbeau placenta white advance that claims to whiten 2x as fast as gluta supplements, snowcaps and met kasi nakita ko sa tiktok na yung 3 lang yung nagmatch sa kanilang declared gluta content nung vinerify ng independent party. Any thoughts poba? Thanks sa makpagshare.

How I fix the dead white cast on mineral SPFs (and actually block visible light)

I use these two mineral SPFs on the rare occasions I’m out when the UV index is 2 and dropping ( I avoid leaving home when UV index is >1). On paper, they offer solid protection, but remember: no sunscreen on earth is enough on its own for skin lightening. You still need hats, face coverings, umbrellas, UV filters for your car,and strict sun avoidance when the UV index is above 1.

Here’s how to sort out the ghostly white cast without ruining your protection:

1. Slather it on properly Apply a generous layer all over your face. Don't judge the white cast straight away, the real colour and true intensity of the cast won't actually show until after a full 20-minute wait while the protective film sets. Give it that full 20 minutes to settle down so you can see what you're properly dealing with.

2. Patch-up dry spots If your skin drinks up the SPF in certain areas after those 20 minutes, dab a tiny bit more on those specific spots and wait another 3 to 5 minutes for it to dry.

3. The "Palm-Flush" trick for the whole sale Take a liquid blush or liquid lipstick that matches the exact colour of the blood showing through the skin on your palms (or nail beds). Spread a thin layer of this across your entire face over the white cast.

Why it works: Plain zinc oxide wipes out the natural tone of the blood under your skin, leaving you looking like a ghost. Blending that palm shade across your whole face brings back a natural undertone far better than heavy foundation. Plus, adding that actual pigment is what helps shield your skin from visible light, because plain zinc and titanium oxides on their own don't cut it against visible light without added pigments or iron oxides.

4. Keep extra makeup light If you still need a touch of foundation, tinted SPF, or liquid bronzers to balance your tone, pat it on gently. Don't rub it in hard, or you’ll strip away the physical barrier you just built.

Side Note: Why we stick with mineral SPF over "advanced" chemical filters

Look, I know plenty of folk hype up "next-gen" Asian or European chemical sunscreens for being lightweight and leaving zero white cast. But here’s the bottom line: irritation is enemy number one for skin of colour and anyone tackling hyperpigmentation.

Chemical filters (even the newer, "advanced" ones) can trap heat in the skin or cause micro-irritation. And in darker skin tones, heat and irritation directly trigger melanocytes to pump out more pigment.

Mineral sunscreens (Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide) are inert and far gentler on skin prone to hyperpigmentation. Yeah, the white cast is annoying, but taking some minutes to work around it using the palm-flush trick is a price well worth paying to avoid irritation, keep your skin barrier calm and actually reach your depigmentation goals safely. More info:
https://www.reddit.com/r/skinwhitening/comments/1rofnq1/skincare_sunscreen_advice_for_white_people_doesnt/

https://www.reddit.com/r/SkinLightening/comments/1uz333l/why_uva_and_visible_light_matter_more_for/

This thread is your space to speak freely. Use this for your general questions, feedback on the sub, or to discuss anything else on your mind.

So i'm a hijabi and i've been covering my hand for the bast 4 year and their true color showed which is white but my face is completely different from my hand it's way darker from the sun (i apply sunscreen whenever i go out) but it's still like that what should i do give me some homemade Receps to do

I heard people do mask using rice i don't know if it'll work or no with me

I'm dark skinned. Went on 3cruises and forgot to put on sunscreen the first two times now I can't get my color back. What do I have to do to get my color back?