Hydroquinone has long been a controversial ingredient in skin care formulations. Now that the FDA is debating banning the ingredient, skin care companies are scrambling to find effective comparable ingredients.
There is some doubt, however, that related ingredients like Arbutin (the glycopyranoside of hydroquinone), bearberry (Uva Ursi), mitracarpus scaber extract and others, which break down and release hydroquinone as part of their mechanism, would be any safer in the long run. Though concentrations would be significantly less in these formulations, hydroquinone can still accumulate in the body.
History
While this ban is newsworthy in the United States, European Union, South Africa, Japan and Australia have already removed hydroquinone from their OTC skin care products and replaced it with Arbutin, Kojic Acid and other gentler ingredients.
Although hydroquinone is potentially disfiguring – especially to those women with darker skin closest to the equator (who get the most sun exposure), it is still being smuggled into countries that enacted similar bans years ago. Not only are the standard 2% hydroquinone creams making their way into black market trade, much higher dosed creams are getting smuggled in as well. This further increases the risk of scarring and other problems that hydroquinone is known to cause.
Hydroquinone has been linked (though not conclusively) to the following serious conditions:
1. Ochronosis – which causes a darkening and thickening of the skin. It can also manifest yellow or gray domed spots, particularly on African skin types, which is why its ban is so important in countries like South Africa where it smuggled in.
2. Cancer – the use of hydroquinone is being investigated for its possible link to certain types of cancer, particularly certain blood cancers like Leukemia. However this link has not yet been established in humans.
3. Changes in adrenal function may be linked to hydroquinone use.
4. High levels of mercury have also been present – but that too is also still being investigated.
5. Kidney damage.
Currently, the best known true alternatives to hydroquinone are kojic acid (derived from mushrooms and soy), licorice extract, stabilized Vitamin C, and Azaleic Acid which comes from grain sources like rye, barley and wheat.
While these substitutes are still effective, they do take longer to work than hydroquinone. In fact, they work best when combined into a single formulation, and then used with a very high SPF sunscreen to prevent further sun damage.
Top Ten Products to Try that are Hydroquinone-Free:
– pHaze13 Pigmentation Gel with kojic acid, citric acid, and lactic acid. (Drugstore.com, Amazon.com)
– Kerstin Florian Serum C Infusion (SpaLook.com)
– Lumedia Facial Brightener with Black Tea ferment and rice bran extract. (Sephora.com)
– Peter Thomas Roth Potent Botanical Skin Brightening Gel Complex with Azelaic Acid, Kojic Acid, Ascorbic Acid, Salicylic Acid (Sephora.com, Skinstore.com)
– Biotherm Pure Bright Illuminating Essence with with vitamin C and light-reflecting micro-minerals. (Sephora.com, Biotherm.com)
– Boscia Antioxidant Recovery Treatment C with vitamin C, parsley, and jojoba leaf. (Sephora.com)
– Kojicol Plus Gel with kojic acid and azelaic acid, plus fruit acids. (SkinElements.com and Amazon.com)
– Kojical Skin Lightening Cream SPF 20 with 2% Kojic dipalmitate and 1% Phytic acid. (SkinElements.com and Amazon.com)
– Murad Recovery Treatment Gel with azelaic acid and vitmain K. Zinc Oxide and peppermint leaf extract soothe skin. (Sephora.com, Beauty.com)
– Neova Kojic Complex Gel with alpha hydroxy acids. (Skinstore.com)
Remember, currently only products that contain hydroquinone are allowed to use the term “lightening”. All other formulations will generally use the term “brightening” instead.
