Skin Whitening Home Remedies

People use skin whitening home remedies for various reasons. To many people, including myself naturally dark skin is beautiful when it is healthy. However, for others a bright, flawless skin tone represents beauty and youth. On the other hand when with aging hormonal pigmentation or age spots develop on the surface of the skin, there are many people who try to conceal or correct them.

Naturally dark skin tone, freckles, age spots, post inflammatory hyper-pigmentation or uneven skin tone are all among the reasons why people may want to lighten, brighten or even out their skin tone. Today, there are several options available which can help you achieve these objectives. Skin whitening home remedies have become increasingly popular, since they are safer to use compared to pharmaceutically developed skin whitening products that often contain dangerous ingredients or dermatology treatments, which many people would find a little too costly.

Skin Whitening Home Remedies

Kojic Acid

Kojic acid is derived from many species of mushrooms, including Aspergillus, Acetobacter and Penicillium. This chemical – which is a common ingredient in under eye creams, skin whitening creams and other bleaching or brightening skin care products – works well because it can suppress the skin’s pigment production by blocking and inhibiting the activity of natural enzymes responsible for melanin production, disrupting the biochemistry of melanin. Kojic acid works in a reversible manner, which means that in order to achieve long term effects, the long term use of this natural ingredient will be necessary.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is well known to reverse the signs of aging. In fact, over the age of 25 your skin needs more vitamin C to preserve its beauty. Vitamin C is often the primary ingredient in skin brightening and anti aging products. With aging we tend to develop an uneven skin tone, especially around the eyes, chin and in the corners of the nose. Over the age of 35 hormonal hyper-pigmentation and age spots are other typical signs of the skin, which can easily give our age away. To prevent or correct these unsightly skin discolorations, you need to both internally and externally feed your skin with vitamin C.

Citrus Fruits and Rose Hip Oil

Lemon and other citrus fruits are popular ingredients in commercially prepared skin care products as well as in skin whitening home remedies. The natural juice of citrus fruits can be added to your face masks or facial washes. Rose hip oil, which contains 33 times more vitamin C than citrus fruits can be applied on its own to the skin or can be added to your regular daily moisturizer.

Retinoids, Beta-Carotene and Vitamin A

Vitamin A is the most important fat soluble vitamin known to delay the signs of skin aging, including the development of age spots and uneven skin tone. It can be obtained from both animal – retinol – and plant – beta carotene – sources, which the body converts into vitamin A. Food sources of these nutrients can be applied to the skin in their natural forms include carrots, sweet potato, red pepper, apricots or cantaloupe. Alternatively, you can add a few drops of carrot seed essential oil to any of your skin care products to benefit from the effects of vitamin A.

Papaya Extract

Besides the fact that papaya is a great source of vitamins A and C, which are both important skin brightening ingredients, this fruit also contains an enzyme known as papain or papaya proteinaise. This enzyme is the main active ingredient in numerous commercial skin whitening products because it has the ability to break down certain proteins involved in melanin production

Licorice

The flavanoid generally known as glabridin, which is obtained from licorice roots is a powerful skin whitening compound in commercially made cosmetic products in addition to skin whitening home remedies. It works as a sun screen by blocking UV rays and by inhibiting the skin’s melanin production.

Mulberry Extract

The extract of mulberry contains natural enzymes that can inhibit tyrosinase, which is an enzyme that catalyzes the skin’s melanin production. This ingredient is suitable for both whitening naturally dark skin and to reduce the signs of aging.

Burner Root

Burner root extract is another tyrosinase inhibitor, which works similarly to mulberry extract.

Dangerous Natural Skin Whitening Remedies You Need to Stay Away from

Arbutin, which is a natural compound extracted from bearberries is a popular ingredient in scar fading creams and skin bleaching products, designed for long term use. This dangerous ingredient undoubtedly has the ability to even out skin tone as well as it can lighten naturally dark skin. However, studies have found that certain species of bacteria naturally found in the human intestines can turn this compound into hydroquinone. Therefore the risks associated with this natural ingredient make it impossible for us to recommend arbutin or any other bearberry extract based skin whitening products. Please read on to understand the risks associated with hydroquinone.

Hydroquinone otherwise known as 1,4-benzenediol is present in many skin whitening products in a 1 to 2% concentration. This potent natural skin whitening substance has been banned in Australia and in many European and Asian countries due to its serious, toxic effects. Regardless of its impressive skin whitening effect, which can provide especially good results on naturally dark skin, the use of hydroquinone has the potential to be dangerous for your health. The long term or excessive use of hydroquinone is associated with intestinal and skin cancer development, hyper-pigmentation, skin thickening, coma, convulsions and in milder cases long term, severe dermatitis.

Tags: skin whitening, skin whitening home remedies

Category: Beauty, Home Remedies, Skin, Skin Whitening