“Cosmetic lightening and hygiene creams … that depigment the skin … are now forbidden,” the ministry said in a statement on Wednesday, as reported by CTV News.
The ban specifically affects lotions and creams said to depigment the skin, containing mercury and its derivatives, cortisone, vitamin A, or more than two percent hydroquinone, a whitening agent used to develop photographs.
“The number of people with side effects caused by these medicines is really high,” said Christian Doudouko, a member of Ivory Coast’s pharmaceutical authority. He added that the products could cause cancer. Dermatologist Elidje Ekra, with the Treichville university hospital in Abidjan, says whitening agents can also lead to hypertension and diabetes.
Whitening agents have been popular for years with African women because they think a lighter skin is more beautiful. The creams are also used by some men. “In our cultures, some people think women with light skin are the most beautiful. This beauty standard … pushes many girls to depigment their skin,” Ekra said.
British consultant dermatologist Justine Kluk told the BBC a major problem with these cosmetics is the lack of regulation. Many of them contain mercury or steroids in excessive amounts, “If one thinks about steroids being present in these products, they’re often present in much higher quantities than we would prescribe,” she said.
With all the possible side-effects, the products are still being used, especially in Nigeria and The Gambia. South Africa has the toughest laws against the sale and use of skin-lightening products, banning the most active ingredient, hydroquinone. But a study done recently by the University of Cape Town found nearly a third of South African women still use them.
In 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration revoked a previous approval on the use of hydroquinone in cosmetics and proposed a ban on the chemical in all over-the-counter products containing hydroquinone. SafeCosmetics.org warns consumers about the use of products containing hydroquinone. The use of hydroquinone in cosmetics is banned in the European Union under Directive 76/768/EEC:1976.
