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What are the Different Types of Bleach for Skin?

By Vanessa Harvey
Updated: May 21, 2024
Views: 23,908
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Bleach for skin can be a combination of synthetic chemicals, of synthetic chemicals mixed with natural ingredients or of natural ingredients, or it can be a single substance sold or used as a cosmetic to lighten or whiten the skin. Hydroquinone probably is the best-known chemical skin bleach that commonly is the active ingredient in bleaching and toning creams for the face and hand. Natural substances known to be effective for skin lightening include lemon juice, kojic acid, lactic acid, ascorbic acid, licorice extract, niacinamide and fresh raw potato juice.

The different types of bleach for skin often are chosen according to the effect that is desired. Some people wish to fade age spots or freckles or simply to achieve an even skin tone, and others desire to lighten their general complexion. Those who are concerned about safety usually opt for an all-natural skin whitener instead of products that contain the chemical hydroquinone, which is believed to be a carcinogen, or a cancer-causing agent. This is why toning, skin whitening and fade creams sold in the United States are not permitted to contain more than 2 percent of the chemical.

Safe whitening of the skin can be accomplished to some degree with the use of all-natural substances. A bleach for skin easily can be made in the home using non-toxic ingredients, or it can be as simple as one single substance that is topically applied to the skin on a regular basis. It is unrealistic to expect to achieve the complete fading of freckles or age spots or to lighten one's complexion more than one shade. Expectations such as these, however, are not always realistic, even when using a strong chemical bleach for skin.

Lemon juice is a natural bleach for skin that can be added to water that is used for washing the face or bathing, but it can be somewhat drying and irritating to the skin. Kojic acid, which causes gentle skin lightening, is an ingredient in some all-natural, hydroquinone-free bleaching creams. Ascorbic acid, more commonly known as vitamin C, gently and slowly bleaches the skin. Niacinamide, or vitamin B3, also figures on the list of natural skin-whitening agents. Lactic acid sometimes is included in natural skin-lightening creams because of its tendency to help the other ingredients penetrate more deeply into the skin. Licorice extract contains a substance known as glabridin, which has an inhibiting effect on pigmentation but is non-toxic to cells that form melanin.

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Discussion Comments
By zeak4hands — On Jul 22, 2011

@Almita - I was wondering about homemade bleach for skin and I found this article. I have been using milk to bleach my skin because I was afraid that lemon would be to harsh and might cause a lot of damage. I will try the tuna fish and water thing and see if I can use lemon. It sounds like it works better than milk.

To keep my skin from getting irritated, I use aloe vera cream. You might try it if you bleach again. I luckily don't drink beer or lime, but I'll avoid the sun anyway. It's not that hard because I work a graveyard shift job.

By Almita — On Jul 22, 2011

@tanner182 - I've spilled corona on myself too, but luckily it was just on my hand -- it left a lighter spot. I looked up why id does that and I found something else that's interesting. Just drinking a lime wedge in your corona can cause your skin to get brown spots! No more corona and lime for me.

I'm not worried about being fair skinned recently, but if I bleach my skin in the future -- I will eat plenty of fish. I love fish anyway which I guess is why my skin is so healthy. Thanks for the advise.

By tanner182 — On Jul 21, 2011

@Almita - if you bleach your skin with lemon, trying eating a lot of fish. The oils in the fish really help keep you skin healthy. Tuna in oil is good. Of course, drink lots of water too.

The only time I bleached my skin was by accident. I was drinking corona with a lime wedge and spilled it on myself. It went all down the side of my left leg. I ignored it and went back to talking with everyone at the picnic -- but that whole side of my leg bleached from the sun!

Even after a year, I still have a lighter tone where I spilled the corona. Avoid that darn stuff.

By Almita — On Jul 20, 2011

I once wanted lighter skin when I was younger -- so I looked up how to bleach skin and used a lemon juice and peroxide combination. It worked and lighten my skin -- but I had to avoid the sun for awhile. I heard that after using lemon, I would freckle badly. I never confirmed if it was true, because I didn't want to risk it.

If anyone else uses lemon to bleach their skin, make sure you follow it up with coconut oil to prevent irritation and drink lots of water. The lemon dries out your skin and the water helps combat that.

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