The Problem With Skin
Bleaching by Ahlexzandra Kokuro, Senior, Morgan Park High School
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“…consistent usage of bleaching products over a long period of time could lead to kidney failure, osteoporosis, cancer and infertility.”
he intended use for skin bleaching products is to reduce the visibility of scars or blemishes on the skin, most commonly for people with hyper pigmentation. The product, often a cream, should also only be used in small portions on the affected area. However, not everyone uses these products for problem areas only. Many people abuse the use of these creams in order to change what they look like completely. One such person making headlines for allegedly doing this is African pop star Dencia.
Dencia’s Bleached skin look
When advertisement pictures of Dencia’s new skin bleaching product, Whitenicious, went viral online social media sites had many people in an uproar. The once deep mahogany skinned singer with dark hair was the poster-child of her own product, only now she was a blonde with a pasty, white complexion. Many people believe that Dencia has used her own product to bleach her entire body, however she blatantly denied these claims in an interview with Ebony Magazine stating that, “I was never that dark in real life and I can send Ebony pictures of me when I was like 15, 16.” Dencia launched her controversial skin bleaching cream Whitenicious in December 2013. The product didn’t start to get viral buzz until late January going into February. The product’s website has customer reviews and pictures of drastic changes in people’s overall skin color. Critics have spoken negatively about the product saying that it teaches girls/ women of color to be ashamed of their skin. During award season, Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o spoke of a letter she received from a young girl who contemplated using the cream, but changed her mind thanks to the proud actress and her unashamedly dark skin tone. The incident sent Dencia on a Twitter rant mocking Nyong’o’s statements. The gossip website Bossip reported that the users of Whitenicious shared and documented their reviews on the product on skincaretalk.com to voice complaints about the cream that caused headaches, pimples and unwanted facial hair. According to the National Daily Newspaper, Dr. Akinlolu Siyanbola, a dermatologist at the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Hospital in Osogbo, Nigeria, and Dr. Abimbola Ibrahim did research stating that consistent usage of bleaching products over a long period of time could lead to kidney failure, osteoporosis, cancer and infertility. Dencia, is not the only celebrity suspected of lightening their skin. In 2009 during the Las Vegas Grammy Latino Awards ceremony, baseball player Sammy Sosa graced the red carpet looking almost unrecognizable. His skin had lightened drastically and everyone suspected that he didn’t like his skin and he wanted to be white, but he denied those claims only stating, “It’s a bleaching cream that I apply before going to bed and whitens my skin some.” Other celebrities, including Beyonce and Lil Kim, have been accused of bleaching their skin to become lighter for whatever reason. Some advice to students pondering on bleaching their skin to be more like someone else: PLEASE DON’T! Be proud of whatever color you are and accept the skin you are in.
Lupita Nyong - Kenyan-Mexican actress and model TRUE STAR MAGAZINE 45