Skin-lightening cream puts woman in coma – here are the dangers to look out for
- Products made outside the US aren’t subject to the same standards as American-made ones and may contain poisonous chemicals such as mercury
- Nearly 40 per cent of women surveyed in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines and Korea say they use skin lighteners
She had been buying face cream through a friend of a friend for 12 years. This time, it was Pond’s Rejuveness, a version of the company’s anti-wrinkle cream that is made and sold in Mexico.
But someone in the Mexican state of Jalisco laced the cream with a toxic skin-lightening compound, and it had a devastating effect on the 47-year-old resident of Sacramento, California.
She showed up at accident and emergency this summer slurring her speech, unable to walk or feel her hands and face, public health officials say. She now lies semi-comatose in a hospital.
Authorities aren’t releasing her name, but they said she is the first known victim of methylmercury poisoning from a cosmetic in the United States.
Methylmercury is a heavy metal used in things such as thermometers, batteries and mirrors, and long-term exposure can cause kidney damage, loss of peripheral vision and lack of coordination. The chemical – along with a less potent, but still toxic, form of mercury known as calomel – is also a key ingredient in skin-lightening products. A bustling market for these products is driven by immigrants who buy them from their home countries.