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Adetutu Sobowale
A professor of Public Health, Tanimola Akande, has advised Nigerians to be proud of their skin and avoid the feeling that anything ‘white’ is superior.
Prof. Akande also advised Nigerians to be satisfied with their skin colour and stop bleaching, saying it could lead to skin cancer.
This charge came as Nigeria joined the rest of the world to celebrate the 2022 World Skin Health Day.
PLATFORM TIMES observed that the World Skin Health Day is celebrated every June 1 and with the aims of recognising and promoting skin health around the world.
Prof. Akande explained that skin bleaching is done using skin creams that contain chemicals that have adverse effects on the body.
He added that some of such chemicals include Mercury, hydroquinone, and steroids are harmful doses.
He said, “skin bleaching is highly prevalent in Nigeria. Most people use it to have an appealing look. Unfortunately, some of them end up harming themselves.
“Blacks should be proud of their skin and avoid the feeling that anything ‘white’ is superior.”
Speaking on the dangers of bleaching, he stated that dangers of skin bleaching include skin cancer, skin burns high sensitivity to light and got weather, numbness and kidney diseases, and memory loss.
“One of the side effects in the long term is a higher risk of skin cancer. Other effects on the body are; kidney diseases, skin burn, high sensitivity to light and hot weather, numbness, and memory loss among others.”He said
He advised that Nigerians should be cautious of the dangers of bleaching and the government and non-governmental bodies should create continuous awareness of the dangers of skin bleaching to the populace.
He further added that regulatory bodies like National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control NAFDAC, and Standards Organisation of Nigeria, SON have roles to play to ensure that creams containing toxic chemicals are not imported or sold.
He said, “While a ban may be a solution, coming up with such policies may be very difficult because of various interests.
“Ensuring that regulatory bodies play their roles is vital to reducing the harm from their use. Some of the manufacturers of the bleaching creams do not indicate the real dosages (not truthful) of the various chemicals.
“This is an area the regulatory bodies need to work on.
“Dermatologists use some of these skin creams to treat certain skin diseases but they ensure the cream used does not contain toxic materials.”
