Academic literature on the topic 'Skin lightening products'

Skin lightening involves various practices to bleach the skin or to reduce the normal skin tone. The practice of skin-lightening spans several continents throughout the centuries and cultures primarily aimed at improving the quality of life. The main aim of skin lightening in medieval times was to increase the sign of femininity and thereby its benefits. In India, skin lightening is preferred as a mark of class, caste, and richness. Dermatologists are faced with many problems dealing with requests to make skin fairer, while in the west, there is a problem dealing with skin conditions in skin of color. Many skin-lightening agents are sold as over-the-counter products and are popularized or advertised through magazines, social media, and celebrity influences. These products are self-prescribed and used rampantly despite the side effects. There is a strong equation between caste, social class, marital prospects, and occupational status based on skin color. Multinational skin-lightening cosmetic brands have a lucrative market. The most widely used topical agent in skin lightening is hydroquinone, while other non-hydroquinone agents are also frequently used. In general, combining skin-lightening agents have increased efficacy. Systemic agents such as glutathione, tranexamic acid, Vitamin C, and other miscellaneous agents are also popular. Several procedures ranging from chemical peels to lights and lasers are increasingly practiced for more effective skin lightening. In India, all skin-whitening creams can be bought without a prescription as OTC products. These products are not considered pharmaceutical products and are not subject to testing and regulations. In addition, the injudicious use of intravenous glutathione by unqualified personnel poses a threat to the lay public. In our role as dermatologists, we should develop a holistic approach in counseling and treating those patients on a quest for skin lightening.

Background: Skin lightening has become one of the strongest desires of Nigerian women and men, and its practice keeps increasing despite its numerous side effects. Objective: To determine the knowledge, attitude, and practices of skin lightening and the motivations for its use among the residents of Ikeja Local Government Area (LGA), Lagos State. Methods: A community-based, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted among 296 residents of Ikeja LGA, Lagos state, using a multistage sampling technique and an electronic, self-administered questionnaire in the Google form format. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 25.92±6.15 years, with 64.0% being females, 75.0% being single, and 75.2% had at least, a tertiary education. Most (98%) respondents demonstrated a high awareness of skin lightening; 66.9% had good knowledge, while 72% had a positive attitude. About half (52.7%) of the respondents had used various skin-lightening products, while most (71.8%) claimed the main reason for their use was to treat skin disorders. Age, gender and educational level were significantly associated with the use of skin-lightening products (p = 0.001). Conclusion: There was relatively good knowledge and a positive attitude towards skin lightening but a fair practice. The commonest reason for using skin-lightening products was for self-treatment of skin disorders. Healthcare providers should provide extensive public enlightenment on the adverse effects of skin lightening.

Background. Skin bleaching is a major health concern among Jamaicans. A common ingredient in skin lightening products is mercury. Mercury is a toxic substance that can cause damage to the gastrointestinal tract, nervous system and kidneys. Objective. The objectives of this study were to use different analytical techniques to measure mercury concentrations in popular skin lightening products used in Jamaica and to assess individual levels of mercury exposure based on product usage. Methods. Sixty skin lightening products were purchased from different vendors across various locations in Jamaica. Each product was initially screened for mercury using a portable handheld energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyzer. In addition, 25 out of 60 products were further measured using cold vapor atomic absorption spectroscopy (CVAAS). Questionnaires were distributed to users of skin lightening products to determine their usage patterns. Results. Six products had mercury concentrations above the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allowable limit of 1 ppm, of which three products contained alarmingly high concentrations (i.e. > 400 ppm). The majority of products (57 out of 60) had mercury concentrations below 10 ppm. The mercury concentrations in skin lightening products ranged from 0.05 ppm to 17,547 ppm. In our sample, 51% of women and 49% of men used skin products more than once per day. Conclusions. On average, creams contained more mercury than lotions and soaps. Individuals who use skin lightening products in Jamaica may be at risk for high mercury exposure, as some popular products were found to have mercury concentrations above the allowable limit. Competing Interests. The authors declare no competing financial interests.

The study aimed to identify the ingredients, processes and practitioners involved in the skin lightening practices in Zimbabwe and to identify the associated, adverse health effects as well as to establish the user demographics. A technical field survey was carried out in Harare, Zimbabwe from October 2022 to March 2023. Out of a total of 450 potential participants, 382 individuals in 3 broad groups were successfully interviewed; these included 150 skin lightening practitioners and traders, 118 skin lightening products users and 114 individuals who have never practiced skin bleaching. A semi structured technical questionnaire was used for each group of participants and the collected data were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively. The study observed that both sexes are involved in skin lightening in Zimbabwe, the majority (52%) being women aged between 31-45 years. The established industry, is divers, including registered healthcare providers, commercial trade, informal markets and others. The majority of practitioners (65%) have less than 5 practising years. There are over 30 different skin lightening products available either as prescription medications, OTC treatments, commercial products, network marketing products as well as illegal bootleg concoctions. The products extends from creams, lotions and serums, to oral and injectable dosage forms. The most prevalent products being corticosteroid creams. 75% of users reported both reversible and non-reversible adverse health side effects and outcomes including skin irritations, inflammation, rashes, erythema, oedemas, ochronosis, dermal atrophy, photophobia, insomnia and unexplained weight gain. The most prevalent side effect being pruritus and irritations. It was observed that there is no formal registration, regulation or legislation covering the products, processes and practice of skin lightening in Zimbabwe.

Many cases of dermatologic complication were reported with the use of skin lightening products. This study assessed the skin lightening practice and health symptoms among female students. Self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 104 female students (56 undergraduates and 48 postgraduates) aged24±2years in Universiti Putra Malaysia. A total of 60.6% (N=63) of the female students used skin lightening products (61.9% of undergraduates and 38.1% of postgraduates). Reasonable price (N=35, 55.6%) and ingredients (N=29, 46%) were considered the most important factors in the product selection. Most respondents purchased the product from drugstores (N=39, 61.9%). Twenty-two respondents (34.9%) in this study experienced skin problem from the products they used. Skin peeling (N=13, 12.5%) and acne (N=9, 8.7%) were the most frequent symptoms experienced. Most of the respondents have the perception that lighter skin provides high self-esteem (N=56, 53.8%) and looks beautiful and healthier (N=54, 51.9%). The use of skin lightening products is common among female students in this study and some of these products can cause skin problems such as skin peeling, acne, and itching.

Japanese pharmaceutical cosmetics, often referred to as quasi-drugs, contain skin-lightening active ingredients formulated to prevent sun-induced pigment spots and freckles. Their mechanisms of action include suppressing melanin production in melanocytes and promoting epidermal growth to eliminate melanin more rapidly. For example, arbutin and rucinol are representative skin-lightening active ingredients that inhibit melanin production, and disodium adenosine monophosphate and dexpanthenol are skin-lightening active ingredients that inhibit melanin accumulation in the epidermis. In contrast, oral administration of vitamin C and tranexamic acid in pharmaceutical products can lighten freckles and melasma, and these products are more effective than quasi-drugs. On the basis of their clinical effectiveness, skin-lightening active ingredients can be divided into four categories according to their effectiveness and adverse effects. This review discusses academic research and development regarding skin-lightening ingredients in Japan.

AbstractThe skin-lightening products for men in India and their mode of advertising have been shaping the concept of attractiveness for Indian men by portraying lighter skin tone as the most fundamental quality of being attractive, always desirable, and successful. Although women’s skin-lightening products in India have received attention by a few scholars lately, men’s products are still underresearched. Hence, this study aims to investigate the issue of colorism augmented by television commercials for men’s “fairness” (light skin tone) products in India. The primary data for this study are six Hindi television commercials for men’s skin-lightening products which were broadcast from 2005 to 2015 and were available on YouTube during data collection. The commercials are by one popular brand, Emami Fair and Handsome. The target commercials are significant for their categorical distinction in directness as well as for their nature of storytelling that helps facilitate the discourse of colorism itself. The methodology is a combination of multimodal analysis, critical discourse analysis, and advertisement analysis. The overall goal of this study is to bring visibility to this subtle and multilayered problem of colorism in Indian society which is being reinforced by the skin-lightening products for men.

Background: The cultural practice of skin bleaching is highly prevalent in Africa. Most reported cases of toxic effects of skin-lightening products occur in this region. Objective: To describe cases of misuse of over-the-counter (OTC) cosmetic skin-lightening products occurring in Canadian immigrants. Methods: Two cases of Canadian immigrants with severe complications from OTC skin-bleaching agents were identified in a community-based dermatology practice in Toronto. The case histories were reviewed and analyzed. Results: A 28-year-old African-Canadian woman developed extensive striae from long-term use of a topical cream containing clobetasol that she had purchased in a Caribbean health food store. A 55-year-old African-Canadian woman developed exogenous ochronosis from the use of a topical bleaching agent she had purchased in Ghana. Conclusion: Cosmetic skin lightening with unregulated topical products occurs in Canada. Dermatologists working in Canada need to be aware of this practice to provide appropriate directive care.

This study explores how changes in skin tone surveillance predicted by: (a) skin tone satisfaction, (b) preference for lighter skin tone, (c) internalization of cultural standards of attractiveness, and (d) use of skin-lightening products among Asian Indian women. Exploratory analyses with demographic variables such as age, education, and marital status were also examined. Cross-cultural issues in conducting research with Asian Indian women using U.S. American standardized measures of skin tone related variables were explored. Participants were 169 Asian Indian women over the age of 18 from New Delhi, Mumbai, and other major cities in India and proficiency in English. The data were collected via an Internet-based survey with measures including the Skin Tone Specific Surveillance Subscale of the Objectification Body Consciousness Scale (OBCS, McKinley & Hyde, 1996); the Skin Color Satisfaction Scale (SCSS, Bond & Cash, 1992); Internalization subscale from the Sociocultural Attitudes towards Appearance Questionnaire -3 (SATAQ-3, Thompson, van den Berg, Gurada, & Heinberg, 2004), and a questionnaire about skin tone preference and use of skin lightening products (Hamed, Tayyem, Nimer, & Alkhatib, 2010). Results of the study indicate that an increase in skin tone surveillance was significantly predicted by decreasing skin tone satisfaction, increased preference for lighter skin tone, internalization of cultural standards of beauty and increased use of skin lightening products among the participants. Implications of this study include illuminating the role of skin tone related attitudes and beliefs among Asian Indian women in the persistence of objectification experiences among Asian Indian women to advance feminist scholarship on objectification.

La couleur de la peau est le caractère physique de l’homme possédant la plus grandevariabilité. Originairement répartie selon un gradient géographique, les migrations depopulations sont venues nuancer cette répartition chromatique. La pigmentation caractérisetoutefois un espace géographique et les populations qui y vivent, constituant un marqueuridentitaire selon l’origine géographique des individus. La rencontre de populations d’originesdifférentes a donné naissance à un imaginaire construit autour de la couleur de la peau. Lapigmentation comme marqueur identitaire, qui n’a de sens que dans le domaine social, seconjugue à des mythes et stéréotypes qui ont évolués au cours du temps mais qui restenttoujours présents dans l’imaginaire social.Stigmatisante et chargée symboliquement, la couleur de la peau est soumise au mêmetitre que le reste du corps à un travail des apparences. Pour être jugée esthétiquementconforme aux normes dominantes, la peau doit répondre à des critères. Comme tout travaildes apparences, l’éclaircissement de la peau est un fait social s’inscrivant dans un système dereprésentations propre à l’environnement socio-culturel des populations qui s’éclaircissent.C’est dans ce contexte que cette pratique corporelle prend son sens. Or dans le cas despopulations originaires d’Afrique vivant en France, leur environnement socio-culturel se voitinfluencé à la fois par leur pays d’origine mais aussi par leur pays d’accueil, ainsi que par lesenjeux politiques les liant historiquement, des enjeux pour lesquels la couleur de la peau a putenir un rôle prépondérant, notamment durant la période de la colonisation.Au cours de notre étude, nous cherchons à faire un état des lieux de cette pratique auprèsdes femmes africaines vivant à Marseille. Nous essayons de mettre en évidence comment estréalisée cette pratique et à quels systèmes de représentations elle fait référence. Pour cela nousnous intéresserons aux produits et aux techniques permettant d’éclaircir la peau, au regard desfemmes africaines qu’elles utilisent ou non ces produits, mais également au discours socialsur la pratique émanant des publicités pour produits éclaircissants, des magazines fémininsciblant les femmes africaines mais aussi les vendeurs et les médecins témoins de l’impactnocif des produits.L’analyse globale de ces différents discours montre que la pratique de l’éclaircissementde la peau ne se limite pas à un changement de couleur de peau. En modifiant la teinte, maisaussi la texture et la luminosité de la peau, les femmes répondent à une logique sociale etimaginaire. En effet, la pratique de l’éclaircissement s’inscrit dans une logique imaginaire auxfondements empiriques et dont le résultat imprimé sur la peau des femmes aura un impactdans leur vie sociale. En changeant leur couleur de peau, les femmes rentrent dans uneconstruction bio-socio-subjective. Elles matérialisent ainsi une quête identitaire s’inscrivantdans un référentiel socio-culturel et chromatique.Ce travail a pour particularité d’apporter une analyse originale sur l’éclaircissement chezles femmes africaines à Marseille mais aussi un regard pluridisciplinaire nécessaire à l’étudede l’éclaircissement de la peau, une pratique corporelle qui renvoie à la fois à des fonctionsbiologiques et culturelles<br>The skin color is the physical feature of human who has the biggest variability. Originallyspread in fonction a geographic gradient, the migrations of populations came to shade thischromatic distribution. However pigmentation caracterises a goegraphic space andpopulations living there, it is them a tracer of identity in fonction of individual geographicorigin. From the meeting of populations of different origin came forth an imaginary built onthe skin color. The skin pigmentation, as identitary tracer, wich has sens only in the socialdomain, is combined with mythes and stereotypes wich had evolved in the course of time butwich still remain presents in the social imaginary.Stigmatising and symbolically weighty, the skin color is subordinate as the rest of thebody to a work of the appareances. To be judged esthetically coplining dominant norms, skinhas to answer to specific standards. Like all works of appreances, the lightening of skin is asocial fact circumscribing within a system of representation belonging to the socio-culturalenvironment of populations who light itself. It is in this context that this corporal practicetakes sens. Thus, in the cas of populations originating from Africa and living in France, theirsocio-cultural environment is influenced by both the country of origin and the recievingcountry, and also by the political stakes wich historically bind them, stakes for wich skin colorhad taken a preponderant function, in particular during the periode of colonisation.In the course of our study, we try to estimate the situation of this practice by africanwomen living in Marseille. We try to make evident how is realised this practice and to wichsystems of representations it makes reference. In this purpose, we take interest to the productsand techniques enabling to light the skin, to the position of african women using or not thoseproducts, to the social discourse on the practice coming from advertising for lighteningproducts, from feminin magazines targetting african women and also the sellers and thedoctors witness of the harmful impact of the products.The global analyse of these different discourses shows that the practice of lightening skindoes not limite itself to a changing of skin color. Modifing complexion, but also texture andluminosity of the skin, women answer to a social and imaginary logic. Indeed, the practice oflightening lies within an imaginary logic with empirical fondations and whose result printedon the women skin will have an impact in their social life. Changing the skin color, womenbring in a bio-socio-subjective construction. Thus they materialise an identitary questcircumscribing itself in a socio-cultural and chromatic referential.This work has for particularities to bring an original analyse on the lightening of africanwomen living in Marseille but also a pluridisciplinar glance necessary for the study of thelightening skin, a corporal practice wich refer to either biological either cultural functions

abstract: This dissertation investigates a subtle yet complex contemporary issue of colorism in India that traces its ideological roots back in the British colonial period or even prior to that. It focuses on the issue of skin-color discrimination in urban Indian men, which is significantly under-researched. This project aims at investigating the issue of skin-color discrimination through analyzing a small corpus of thirteen YouTube commercials dating from 2005 to 2017 for men’s skin-lightening products of a popular skin-care brand called “Fair and Handsome” from a multimodal critical discourse analytic perspective. This study further aims to understand how the discourse of colorism is operating in these Indian commercials for men’s skin-lightening products, what kinds of semiotic and socio-cultural (discourse) elements are naturalizing the notion of “fairness,” and finally, how the construction of male gender is facilitated. Although the project’s main theoretical arc is critical discourse analysis (CDA), the methodological needs necessarily require drawing upon theoretical tools from advertisement analysis, multimodal analysis, gender studies, social psychology, history, cultural anthropology, race theory, and other related fields of study. After successfully facilitating an exhaustive analytical undertaking, this dissertation contributes to the understanding of colorism as more than intra-group racism in India and situates this perpetuating issue as a contemporary research target in the socio-cultural contexts of globalization and urbanization.<br>Dissertation/Thesis<br>Doctoral Dissertation English 2019

Abstract Here we explore the chemical practice of skin whitening, a prevalent practice among young service sector workers in the Philippines and Indonesia. Chemical Whiteness investigates this problematic practice in everyday interactions, where people with darker skin are undervalued and those with lighter skin, which is considered pleasing to employers and clients, attain a higher value in the workplace. These workers are pressured to portray the good life they are selling to their clients, performing the “pleasing personality” that their companies want to associate with their services. To lighten their skin, our interlocutors apply range of expensive and often harmful products, often involving daily reapplication. While skin lightening is commonly associated with women, we discovered that in the Philippines, young men competing for positions in sales and customer service had also developed their own beauty routines with skin whitening products. While such practices are meant to increase young people’s worth in the service sector economy, like many other chemical practices explored in this book, they can lead to the further precarization of young people’s lives.

This research study is an exploration of the ways in which a beauty ideal is constructed from the promotion of skin lightening products across social media platforms Instagram and Facebook. In addition, it investigates consumers of skin-lightening products, the social media ‘influence' behind the adverts and their response to these advertisements, in a particular ethnic community: British Bangladeshi. The study through the examination of respondent's skincare regime using photo-elicitation and semi-structured interviews sought to deconstruct their aesthetics through skin colouring products. Combining visual discourse analysis from social media advertisements, the study presents the voices and experiences of the seven women to show how they construct their identities through the ‘fantasy' of whiter skin.

Natural cosmeceuticals are obtained from natural sources like plants, animals, microorganisms, etc. Acknowledgement of the various properties of natural cosmeceuticals, such as anti-oxidant, anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, anti-acne, hydrating, skin lightening, hair smoothening, emulsifying, exfoliating, fragrant, and surfactant, has led to an increase in the demand for natural cosmeceuticals over synthetic cosmetics in recent years. Natural cosmetics are employed in skin cosmetics, hair cosmetics, lip cosmetics, nail cosmetics, etc. Many surveys suggest that the need for natural cosmetics is going to rise hugely in coming years. This chapter is based on the importance and formulations of natural products used for the production of natural cosmeceuticals. Natural cosmetics possess the fewest side effects; however, a few of the natural ingredients used in cosmeceuticals cause allergic reactions. This chapter emphasizes the cosmetic products obtained from natural resources along with their benefits, history, economic value, and limitations.

This review provides a comprehensive insight into the content of five heavy metals found in cosmetics and their effects at the site of application and on several organs via the dermal route of administration. Regulation of these products is very limited with little information on limits of these metals at the disposition of manufacturers. Lead and arsenic are considered to be contaminants in cosmetics whereas cadmium may be present as a coloring agent besides being a contaminant. Nickel is notorious for its association with allergic chronic dermatitis. Though mercury is rarely present in cosmetics, it has been found in significant quantities in skin lightening creams. A multi-variate meta-analysis was conducted to determine the relationships between the five metals and any possible differences between the sixteen categories of formulations used for facial and body skin care and cosmetic purposes. In general, lipsticks, eye shadows, face paints, make-up foundation and skin lightening creams exhibited a high amount of heavy metals superior to the levels of these metals in other facial and body products. The outcome of this analysis urges regulators and manufacturers to consider routine monitoring for the presence of these metals in cosmetics.

Natural products are used to cure dermatologic disorders like anti-aging, acne, hives, etc. Natural products are sources of novel drugs and aid in drug development in the pharmaceutical industry, and they are utilized in making formulations and medicinal drugs. Potential sources for anti-aging are leaves, fruits, flowers, and seeds. Pure compounds extracted from Fabaceae and Zingiberaceae have promising anti-aging properties. Some of the natural products used for anti-aging are green tea (Camellia sinensis), papaya (Carica papaya), grape seed (Vitis vinifera), olive (Olea europaea), turmeric (Curcuma longa), berries, sunflower seeds (Helianthus annuus), etc. They are used as pharmaceutical formulations. Natural sources contain moisturizing agents, hydroxy acids, vitamins, antioxidants, anti-inflammatory, sunblock, and skin-lightening ingredients. Natural products are gaining popularity as they are eco-friendly, consumer-friendly, chemical-free, and organic ingredient-based. Thus, natural products can be used in the skincare or beauty industry due to their anti-aging properties.

Skin-lightening products are arguably the best example of the powerful impact of advertising on people’s psycho-social behaviour. South Asians are notorious when it comes to their obsession with lighter skin tones. In India, the biggest market for skin-lightening skincare products, this phenomenon is fuelled by centuries of historical, political, social, religious, and geographical segregation as well as the influence of Western media (Mishra, 2015). By considering the negative impact of fairness cream use and the promotion of skin-lightening products, The Indian Ministry of Health and Welfare banned the negative portrayal of dark skin in advertising (Raj et al., 2022). However, these regulations apply only to the textual or verbal messaging in advertising. Overcoming those regulations is a simple matter of replacing ‘Fair’ or ‘Whitening’ with words like; ‘Glow’, ‘Brightening’, and ‘Lightening’. These regulations do not challenge the underlying discriminatory narrative of skin-lightening advertisements, due to a lack of in-depth understanding of how various aspects of advertising impact its viewers. This paper aims to bridge this knowledge gap by studying how different aspects of advertisements can impact psycho-social behaviour. The research design is a qualitative systematic literature review with a deductive approach that uses both empirical and theoretical data. Literature from credible databases such as; Google Scholar, Springer Link, ScienceDirect, and Wiley Online Library, published within the last 10 years, were considered for the systematic review to protect the findings' credibility and relevance. PRISMA model of inclusion and exclusion was used as a screening process to narrow down the final literature materials. Indian society views lighter skin as an indicator of success (Verma and Ray, 2023). This practice pre-dates India's history of colonisation when the arrival of Nomadic Aryans with lighter skin met their opponents - the darker-skinned Dravidans (Bajwa, von Maur, and Stephan, 2023). Skin tone would have been an easy indicator of tribe or caste and later social hierarchy. Centuries later and after several colonial invasions, Indian society associates lighter skin with wealth and privilege. Yet, according to Pathak and Nichter (2018), Indian women have little knowledge and experience with skincare products due to the negative social stigma surrounding self-adornment. Therefore aspirations for lighter skin stem from various social and personal measures (See Fig. 1) which are then used in creating compelling advertisements. Research shows that TV and digital advertisements are themain influencers for the use of skin-lightening products among Indian women (Mangal et al., 2021). For Indian women, fair skin means they get better opportunities in their careers and in marriage. Most of the early 2000s fairness advertisements from India narrated a similar story. A young girl failed to secure a dream job, only to pass the interview after using the advertised skin-lightening product. Another girl was rejected by her lover only to have him come running after she had used the skin-lightening product. More recent advertisements show lighter skin as a catalyst for female empowerment (Arumugam et al., 2022). See Fig. 2. However, most of these advertisements portray the product as a need by accepting, amplifying, and advocating society’s stigmas and prejudices surrounding skin tone. The degradation or the humiliation of the character with the darker skin in most of these advertisements is how the brand uses its power and strength to influence a new narrative in society, where the product becomes a need. In his 2014 study, S. Nadeem explains how advertisements have set a benchmark for beauty and assigned light-skin exclusionary powers which leads to ‘Social Mimicry’ a state of false consciousness and a desire based on power relationships. He also points out how all these advertisements hint at a lack of individual sovereignty. The skin-lightening product always has validation from friends or family (See Fig.3) . This is a driving state created by social measures. Meanwhile, Krishen, LaTour, and Alishah (2024) use the Consumer Motivational Model to elaborate on how advertisements create ‘skin-tone tension’ among Asian women by creating a need-oriented drive state to move from the actual self to the ideal self. ‘If the model in the advertisement enjoys freedom and joy, I can too. I just have to lighten my skin!’. However, while Albert Bandura’s Social Cognitive theory suggests that the consumer is an active decision-maker in the buying process, a more advertising-centric model created by Justine Combs, called Social Framework for Advertising, believes that society and media are an active influence in the consumer’s passive decision-making (Combs, 2016). An advertisement’s effectiveness can be measured in two ways: financial and cognitive, where financial effectiveness is measured using the product’s elasticity of demand (Shapiro, Hitsch, and Tuchman, 2021). Cognitive effectiveness calls on measuring the change in brand perception and perceived value of the product within its target audience. Such a cognitive change is supported in an advertisement by three factors; advertising media, messaging, and time of schedule (De-Miguel-Guzmán et al., 2020). According to Zhao et al. (2022), an advertisement’s quality and frequency are the two main factors that manipulate consumers. While ad frequency helps build credibility, the definition of ad quality was found to be vague. This study defined the quality of an ad as the ability of its content to convince the viewer using personal and social measures. Ad content can also be analysed in two parts; verbal and visual. Verbal strategies like; the use of positive adjectives, and the use of possessive and plural pronouns (eg; ‘us’ and ‘you’) play a major role in advertisements in validating the viewer’s relationship with social forces. Advertising agencies also use various visual strategies such as; celebrity endorsements, depiction of scientific evidence as well and visualising the transition of the skin tones. Therefore, the research concludes that regulations on the textual content of an advertisement alone are not enough to counter the discriminatory impact of skin care advertisements. The findings of this research call for more holistic and adequate regulations for advertisements promoting skin-lightening products. This research further highlights the need for advertisers to be bold in using their creativity to challenge long-held prejudices of society, rather than re-iterating them. This can create more authentic consumer engagement with skincare brands, especially as the world embraces changing sentiments about our sense of self.