What Skin Whitening Substances Should You Avoid During Pregnancy

29/08/2014 00:18

Pregnancy is one of the most beautiful periods for a woman. However, the nine months of pregnancy are not only the most beautiful, but they also represent the time when the woman's body is sensitive to many substances. This is why, restrictions are made when it comes to using different types of medications, chemical products, make-up and skin-care products. One of the delicate issues for pregnant women is skin bleaching. Because most of the products which can be found on the market are made up of chemical substances, high precaution must be taken when choosing one or another skin whitening product.

Although not all the skin whitening products are harmful for the pregnant woman or for the fetus, there are some creams, ointments and pills which are not recommended in the nine months before delivering the child or in the following few months. The first on the list of substances which you should avoid when you are pregnant is hydroquinone. This substance has been the reason of debate between many scientists along the time. Nowadays, hydroquinone is prohibited in the states of the European Union and Africa, while in United States, its regimen is a rather uncertain one, as it was banned several years ago, then put on the list of safe substances.

However, if for other people this substance may not be very damaging, the effects on pregnant women and their fetuses are quite damaging. Reports have also talked about serious fetus malformation and further skin darkening in the case of mothers, so under no circumstances should you purchase any product containing this substance if you are pregnant.

Hauronoside and arbutin are two substances similar to hydroquinone which have no side effects either on the fetus or on the mother, thus can successfully replace hydroquinone. 

Yet, even though not all the skin whitening products are said to be dangerous to your health, refraining from experimenting too many such substances would be a great idea. This is mainly because your skin as well as the entire body is much more sensitive during pregnancy and requires more attention. Using aggressive bleaching substances may increase the risk of further darkening the skin or even badly damage the tissues, which is not something anyone may want.

There are several skin lightening products on the market today. You have many options, but not all of the skin lightening ingredients are made from natural products, and a lot of them are not safe. If your goal is to use a safe skin lightening product made from natural ingredients, then the very first thing you need to do is read the ingredients list.