And with thousands of stores across the world selling and promoting skin lightening products, it is no wonder the skin bleaching industry is estimated to be worth over $8.9 million by 2024, with a ...

And so my mom saw it, saw it normalized and just saw it was the thing to do," said Stephanie Yeboah, a British Ghanaian author. Yeboah started using skin whitening creams at 14 years old.

But with the effectiveness of this powerful ingredient comes a few risks. "Because it inhibits all pigment production, it may result in unwanted lightening on normal skin," said Dr. Imahiyerobo-Ip.

The government in Nigeria is warning about the health risks of skin lightening, where potent chemicals can thin and damage skin. It's a booming business in that country and others.

Skin lightening products can be dangerous for consumers when they contain harmful ingredients that are illegal for over-the-counter sales, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned.

According to an eye-opening article in The New York Times, over-the-counter skin lightening creams like Fair & White can cause disturbing side-effects.

An investigation into skin-lightening products sold online found mercury in nearly half of products tested. Federal law and an international treaty restrict the use of mercury in cosmetics to 1 ppm.

Skin whitening products containing high levels of mercury continue to be sold on the world's biggest e-commerce platforms, including websites run by eBay, Amazon and Alibaba, a new report by the ...