Skin bleaching, skin lightening, skin whitening – a few names that more-or-less refer to the same practice. These names have different connotations (Many companies market skin-brightening products but would stray from using the term “bleaching.”), but essentially they all involve using chemicals to reduce the amount of melanin in the skin, leaving a lighter complexion.

According to VMV Hypoallergenics newsletter:
“Lightening is a process that returns your skin to its original, lighter pre-sun-and-light-exposed shade — which, because it is the shade of your skin before harmful exposure, is arguably also a healthier state…Because skin “whitening” treatments sometimes aim for a drastic change in skin tone, they can involve harsh bleaches that try to strip the skin of its pigment…When treatments aim to brighten skin, the objective is usually to impart a vibrant, natural radiance to skin that can be lost as older, dead skin cells adhere to the surface of the skin.”

Skin lightening/bleaching/whitening is extremely popular in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. In these countries, products use dangerous, sometimes-cancerous ingredients that are banned elsewhere, such as hydroquinone. However, the practice exists all over the world, including in the US – it is just a bit more discreet. We have all seen products at the drug store that advertise younger, cleaner, brighter skin. Has that last word ever made you look twice?

It seems that mass media has been focusing on skin bleaching more lately than in the past. Celebrities who are open about their decision to use these products receive mostly negative attention. Some recent examples include Lil Kim, Azealia Banks, and even Sammy Sosa. Azealia Banks took to Facebook to defend the practice, saying it’s just the same as getting a nose job or another type of plastic surgery. Is it, though? Or is skin bleaching a hazardous result of the way society treats skin color?

—written by Taylor Scott Spicer