Why do people want to lighten Skin Colour?
Why do you think many people would like to have lighter skin complexion?
Skin whitening has a long history in Asia stemming back to ancient China and Japan. A white complexion was seen as noble and aristocratic, especially in Southeast Asia. Only the rich could afford to stay indoors while peasants worked in fields.
There are many factors why many Asians/ Black Afro-Caribbean prefer fair skins. One of them is that it is looked as a superior colour. It could be because most of the rulers in the Asian subcontinent were fair in complexion. And this attitude has followed since then. To add to that we also associate fair complexion to westernisation which people in Asian countries are following. Moreover we have been told since childhood about mythological evil characters as dark in colour.
Surprisingly if you look closely at the English language you will see that we use the word fair to mean nice and good and dark to symbolise ugly and evil.
Besides this the media has also played a major role in this matter. Almost all actresses, all models in asian subcontinent are fair in complexion.
Why this fuss on people lightening their skin seen in such a negative light?
Skin lightening is a personal choice and it should remain that way. Everyone has the right to decide what suits them the best. What makes them happy or make them feel confident. As you would see people colour their hair green, pink which are not natural shades, but it is not looked down upon. Similarly there is no reason why someone should look down upon using skin lightening products. Problem starts when people tend to overdo things or become dependent on such things.
What products can be used?
Before a person starts to use a product they should make sure that the product is safe to use and contains no harmful chemicals. Safest bet these days is to use products with natural extracts which have been certified by the country’s national health agency.
What can be the side effects of using such products?
The side effects can be psychological dependence, or biological such as rashes, blood disorders or even neurological problems. These are seen usually with products that have high concentration of chemicals such as hydroqinone, mercury and topical steroid creams. It is best to use products with natural extracts.
Prevalence
A recent study in 2002 showed that around 77% people in Lagos in Nigeria were using skin lightening products. In another survey it was found that 66% men in HongKong wished their partners were fairer in complexion whereas 50% women wanted their partners to be fairer. The figure rises to 77% males wanting their partners to be white in Malaysia.
Skin whitening has a long history in Asia, stemming back to ancient China and Japan, where the saying "one white covers up three ugliness" was passed through the generations.
A white complexion was seen as noble and aristocratic, especially in Southeast Asia, where the sun was always out. Only those rich enough could afford to stay indoors, while peasants baked in the rice fields.
In their early bid to lighten up, Chinese ground pearl from seashells into powder and swallowed it to whiten their skin, says Chinese University chemical pathology professor Christopher Lam Wai-kei, while across the Yellow Sea, Geisha girls powdered their faces chalk white.
This obsession with whiteness has not faded over time. A survey by Asia Market Intelligence this year revealed that three quarters of Malaysian men thought their partners would be more attractive with lighter complexions.
In Hong Kong two thirds of men prefer fairer skin, while half the local women wanted their men paler. Almost half of Asians aged 25 to 34 years used skin whiteners in a business that some analysts have said could be worth billions of dollars.