How do skin lightening/whitening creams work?

I'm writing an essay for sociology on the phenomena and I want to include how they work on a scientific level. All I know these creams are supposed to be dangerous but google isn't getting me any further than that. Any help is greatly appreciated!

How do skin lightening/whitening creams work?
I just used one, cuz i got a little dark after football.


Then i used suntan lotion to help protect


it but im not sure on how it works.
Reply:There are so many skin lightening products. There are ones that bleach your skin, ones that remove the pigment out of your skin..





Look up hydroquinone. There is a big debate on whether Dermatologists should prescribe it any more. It's wonderful for taking pigment out of skin in small doses, but in high doses, it thins your skin, and most people who use it aren't education on it. It's apparently also the only ingredient FDA approved that's proven to take out pigment from your skin.





You might also want to write about how pigment is produced in the skin, and why.
Reply:Skin lightening creams work by reducing melanin production in your skin cells. Most skin lightening creams contain 2%hydroquinone which is the active ingredient. It takes at 6-8 weeks for any lightening to occur and it does have harmful side effects. Continue to search. Try Yahoo!
Reply:in a nutshell, the skin lightening process involves exfoliation or peeling off the topmost dark skin layers to reveal a lighter skin tone.. there is a controversy over the use of skin lighteners due to harmful ingredients such as hydroquinone, mercury and steroids.. there are safe skin lightening ingredients to accomplish the job without the unnecessary risk of serious side effects.. but the success in achieving lighter or whiter skin will not rely on products alone..


if you need more info, i'll give you more links. :-)

shells