Helloooo from Germany!

Are there any europeans who can suggest me a SAFE (I don't care if they take a long time as long as they change something and are not dangerous) product so I can get lighter?

I have natural brown skin because because I'm from italian descent, I never used sunblocker or whitening creams but I tried to avoid the sun, but well, sometimes I'm in the sun... I will change that by now. Will using sunblocker alone now make me lighter? My hands are 1-2 shades lighter than my face, I don't know why... I wash and exfoliate my face everyday.

That's my skin in a medium light room: http://i40.tinypic.com/3354i95.jpg

bye bye
thank you ^^

The first thing you need is a good sun block for a start, avoiding the sun does not mean you don't get the UV rays. Clouds and fog are not good filters of UV light.

There a lot of safe options to get what you after, I am sure others will come with suggestions but generally exfoliating, and peels are good. Kojc acid is shown to be a safe lightener.

Actually kojic acid has had some bad reports its supposed to be cancerious, same with arbutin its supposed to be convert into hydroquinone in the skin so I really don't know why its still being used.. scamming people. Not caring about peoples health.. and well being and using peoples desperatness to sell their products

@ serious chick - babes tell me one research where a product good or bad may not have produced cancer ?

According to one research coffee is good, another says it causes cancer, one research says lettuce is good, other says it causes prostrate cancer.

Chill. Anything in small quantities is not bad. Anything overdone can cause cancer.

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Originally Posted by imgorgeous

@ serious chick - babes tell me one research where a product good or bad may not have produced cancer ?

according to one research coffee is good, another says it causes cancer, one research says lettuce is good, other says it causes prostrate cancer.

Chill. Anything in small quantities is not bad. Anything overdone can cause cancer.

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I agree, but since we're on the topic of skin lightening products, these ingredeints will always need to be used at a high dose in order to work, and of course we're not here to waste our time on under-performing products like I have for years on end.. so in order for these to work it needs to be used in higher doses and thus are then dangerious, we'll be doing our skin harm and burning it for the sake of lighter skin!
I'm also in search of a good safe gentle yet effective lightening cream and may be those whitening supplements if I find any thing that looks reliable. If anyone knows of anything safe and relaible please give me a shout! Much appreciated.. I'll continue on the my search too.

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Originally Posted by itariachan

Helloooo from Germany!

Are there any europeans who can suggest me a SAFE (I don't care if they take a long time as long as they change something and are not dangerous) product so I can get lighter?

I have natural brown skin because because I'm from italian descent, I never used sunblocker or whitening creams but I tried to avoid the sun, but well, sometimes I'm in the sun... I will change that by now. Will using sunblocker alone now make me lighter? My hands are 1-2 shades lighter than my face, I don't know why... I wash and exfoliate my face everyday.

Thats my skin in a medium light room: http://i40.tinypic.com/3354i95.jpg

bye bye
thank you ^^

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I've actually found in another thread a skin lightening/brightening system a member has been talking about called yllume, Yllume | 100 years of skincare secrets
I'm looking for a discount code for it, I cannot possibly afford it at this point in time though..

Any skin lightening agent (whether natural or chemical) is known to have some level of hazard to melanocytes (melanin producing cells), because they prevent the tyrosinase from producing in full capacity in order to have less melanin in the skin, thus equalling in having a lighter toned skin. That is how many of them work by reducing the amount of melanin rich cells from being formed, or just avoid lightening all together. That is just how majority of lightening agent work.

For a more natural lightening agent, it takes longer to produce some affects for fairer skin. But it is more beneficial and works best when used with other lightening agents (depending what they are) and exfoliating the skin to increase skin cell turnover.

And I must add that dermatologists have confirmed that lightening agents such as hydroquinone, arbutin, kojic acid, mulberry root, etc. etc... are not cancerous to humans. Reason as of why the FDA has disregarded this as a potential hazard and cancerous for the human skin (keep in mind when used correctly and safely), exfoliating on a regular basis, and using in safe dosages (no more than 4-5% for hq that is) for certain amounts of time as the dermatologists use for many of their patients with hyperpigmentation. The majority of those I hear this "cancerous " theory are not from doctors and not from scientists, but from over-charged and high-priced companies selling "natural" lightening products for an arm and a leg in which people can simply learn to compound on their own if that is their desire to do so for only a small fraction of the cost... because they know that many will never know this nor attempt in trying. So, the card that they use is the scare facto card. Many people tend to only repeat what they hear from high-priced sellers because many of the sellers are trying to make a buck of two by using scare tactics to make a sell that many of us can simply do.

But, what they forget to mention is that when used correctly, and if there's no allergic reactions, we can take dermatologists' suggestions and use it with success and to our own advantage when we choose to use the certain ingredients and products properly. People just need to stop abusing and over-abusing certain products, use them correctly, avoid toxic and hazardous products that are contaminated with steroids, mercury, lead, arsenic, very high and unsafe amounts of hydroquinone, and who knows what else. Listen to their skin's reactions, and search for what will work best for their skin type and why. Many companies will do anything (and I mean anything) to earn a buck fifty. But, we will have to take the time and read, ask questions, and research on our own so that we can lessen the chance of being taken advantage of. Simple.

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Originally Posted by Golden_Girl

Any skin lightening agent (whether natural or chemical) is known to have some level of hazard to melanocytes (melanin producing cells), because they prevent the tyrosinase from producing in full capacity in order to have less melanin in the skin, thus equalling a lighter toned skin. That is how they work by reducing the amount of melanin rich cells from being formed, or just avoid lightening all together. That is just how it works.

For a more natural lightening agent, it takes longer to produce some affects for fairer skin. But it is more beneficial and works best with other lightening agents when your definately exfoliating the skin to increase skin cell turnover.

And I must add that dermatologists have confirmed that lightening agents such as hydroquinone, arbutin, kojic acid, mulberry root, etc. etc... are not cancerous to humans. Reason as of why the FDA has disregarded this as a hazard and cancerous for the human skin (keep in mind when used correctly and safely), exfoliating on a regular basis, and in using in safe dosages (no more than 4-5% for hq that is) for certain amounts of time as the dermotologists use for their patients with hyperpigmentation. The majority of those I hear this "cancerous " theory from is not from doctors, not from scientists, but from over-charged and high-priced companies selling "natural" lightening products for an arm and a leg in which people can simply learn to compound on their own for only a small fraction of the cost....because they know that many will never know nor try, and the card that they use is the scare factor. Many people tend to only repeat what they hear from high-priced sellers because many of the sellers are trying to make a buck of two usinf scare tactics.

But, what they forget to mention is that when used correctly and if theres no allergic reactions, we can take dermatologists' suggestions and use it with success when we choose to use the certain ingredients and products properly. People just need to stop abusing and over-abusing certain products, use them correctly, avoid toxic and hazardous products that are contaminated with steroids, mercury, lead, arsenic, and very high and unsafe amounts of hydroquinone. Listen to their skin's reactions, and search for what will work best for their skin type and why. Many companies will do anything (and I mean anything) to earn a buck 50. But, we will have to take the time and read and research on our own so that we can lesson the chance of being taken advantage of. Simple.

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Totally agree with what you said Golden_Girl, I think we ourselves can be the best judge of what is good and bad for our skin, intuitively and physically, I have really bad sensitive skin, so this serious chick is seriously thinking of trying the yllume treatment, I think it'll suit my skin.. I must say your an encyclopedia though! Bravo! X

Thanks a-lot! :)

I will try sunblocker and maybe - the yllume treatment.

Bye

How comes there is so much talk on different threads about this yllume??

It was on the back of huge buses with adverts around main London and the visibility is sort of going everywhere,so maybe that's why? Lightening forums are bound to discuss a new product, wheather one has herd of it or tried it... I've been into antiaging stuff since I can remember and have shown an interest in lightening after my best friend tried olay whitening in Dubai, it didn't do much for her.. and so the obsession grew and continued! I thought we can discuss any brands we like or have tried or can advise or be advised here? Or is there only certain brands that are allowed to only be discussed? As yes I've seen it mentioned by a few people, not many though.. please let me know...

Wow, no offense but you have a beautiful skin tone, why would you want to lighten?!

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Originally Posted by Vicky_D

Wow, no offense but you have a beautiful skin tone, why would you want to lighten?!!

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Yeah! For someone who has not used sunblock and had a little sun your skin is still very light, but I can see why you'd want your hands to match the rest of your complexion.

@ Golden_Girl
You just always have a way of breaking things down!
Nice lecture.
Thank you.

@Golden_Girl... and to others too...
From your write up,I gathered that it is dangerous when you abuse the product.Aside using HQ in high doses... what if one uses 2% over a long period,is that abusing it?If so,then for how long is one supposed to use HQ at 2% concentration?A week,month?

Once you've reached your goal you don't have to use a lightener everyday. Make sure you use a sunblock and you should be OK for a while, it depends.

Me I like to experiment, I used the F&F 5xGel on my hands and it lighten them along with my knuckles several shades and I stopped because I wanted to see how long it would take for them to start to re-darken since the Gel is not a permanent lightener and it took 3 weeks.

Thanks Nikki!

Your welcome Violaename:)

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Originally Posted by Violaename

@Golden_Girl...and to others too...
From your write up,I gathered that it is dangerous when you abuse the product.Aside using HQ in high doses...what if one uses 2% over a long period of time,is that abusing it?If so,then for how long is one supposed to use HQ at 2% concentration?A week,month??

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Thanks!
Yes, for some people they are not meant to use hq due to an allergic or sensitive reaction. I do not believe that it is a permanent solution, byt rather a potential stepping stone to help one reach their goal along with other lightening agents that can be used such as alpha arbutin, kojic acid, licorice, bearberry, etc. And used along with exfoliants such as AHAs (lactic, glycolic, etc), tretinoin (retin-a), BHAs (salicylic acid), scrubs, papaya (papain extract), etc. But an expensive product used in order to maintain the complexion isn't a requirement, but rather one of the additional options to choose from. Maintaining your results 3-4 times a week with an effective skin lightener, along with exfoliaiting, and using a sunblock with spf 50+, and limiting sun exposure will help you to maintain your results.

2% will mean less results, and the little results you may get from 2% will take a longer period but yes, it is a more tolerant amount. Any form of hq again, I wouldn't recommend using it as a permanent solution. Instead of using 2% hq, an alpha arbutin 5% crème along with a good exfoliant may give better results. But, these all take time.


"There recently had been a lot of buzz regarding the safety of hydroquinone and its potential carcinogenic risk, however, this potential association has not materialized or been proven, and has not stopped physicians from using this bleaching chemical. It is safe, and nearly all dermatologists use it. You can get hydroquinone in the standard 4% cream from your pharmacy via prescription.."
Both Hydroquinone and Tretinoin are safe. You can do Hydroquinone 4-8% and Tretinoin 0.1%. - Tretinoin and Hydroquinone safety

The choice is yours to try 2%, I had tried 2% crème that belonged to my mom a few years back once only to help fade a couple of small acne spots on my face for about 3-4 weeks and I began to notice the acne spots were beginning to fade. But, I never used this percentage for lightening my skin in shades.

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Originally Posted by Vicky_D

Wow, no offense but you have a beautiful skin tone, why would you want to lighten?!!

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Thank you. :)

Well, dark skin is considered (in Germany) as beautiful. It's not unusal that light people are getting bullied because... well, they are light. (You look like a corpse, ill, blabla, go get a tan)... I have two bestfriends, a pale redhead and a brown (darker than me) half black/half german-"mix"... the redhead can't get darker, because she will only turn red. And my darker friend gets so much compliments because she looks so healthy and a lot friends envy her because she don't has to destroy her skin to have this skintone every day.

I get a lot compliments for my skin tone, too. But recently they tell me that I got pale (LOL)... I don't know why I tell you this, maybe it's the same in your country. :D But I just want to a little lighter, that's all.