Table of contents:
- Whitening cream turns out to damage human nerves
- What is methylmercury?
- Tips to prevent organic mercury poisoning from cosmetic products
It has been decades since whitening creams were introduced in the beauty world for people who want their skin to be brighter and whiter. However, did you know that there are whitening creams that can damage the human nervous system?
Check out the reviews below to find out the answer.
Whitening cream turns out to damage human nerves
As reported by the Medicalxpress page, a skin whitening cream product from Mexico can actually damage the central nerve of a woman from California.
Doctors think that this condition is caused by the mercury content in the product which is quite toxic. The reason is, the type of mercury in these products is organic mercury, more precisely methyl mercury.
As a result, the woman was hospitalized. His condition got so badly that doctors had to give him nutrition through a tube and were unable to speak or take care of himself.
At first, the victim feels weak in the shoulders and arms and there is muscle movement for no apparent reason. Then, she was hospitalized and during the two weeks of the treatment process, the woman showed other symptoms, such as:
- Blurred vision
- The balance when walking is disturbed
- It's hard to speak
These symptoms were finally confirmed by blood tests and urine tests which showed that the victim was mercury poisoning.
The suspicion of the whitening cream used by the victim was explained from the family. They explained that her sister had been using the whitening cream twice a day for the past seven years.
After further investigation, it turned out that the whitening cream contained a type of mercury which was quite toxic and could damage the nervous system, namely organic mercury, especially methylmercury.
What is methylmercury?
As a type of mercury that is poisonous and can be found in whitening cream products that can damage the nervous system, methyl mercury can be found in your environment.
According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, methylmercury is a type of organic mercury that is processed by biological bacteria.
Usually, this mercury is more common in fish, so that mercury exposure to humans is more common through fish consumption.
If consumed in normal limits, it may not cause serious side effects. However, when exposed to an unreasonable amount, it can certainly damage your body.
This is because methylmercury can be absorbed by the blood, brain and placenta. As a result, this one mercury is quite dangerous and can cause birth defects, nerve problems, and stunt growth.
As previously discussed, exposure to mercury through whitening creams can indeed damage the nervous system because it is absorbed directly from the skin.
In addition, organic mercury absorbs well in body tissues and mixes easily with fat tissues in the body. Blood contains high enough water, so that this organic mercury will be found more in organs that contain lots of fat.
Unfortunately, the methylmercury in the victim's body cannot be removed. Even though it has gone through the chelation therapy process.
Chelation therapy or Chelation therapy usually quite effective in treating inorganic mercury poisoning. However, it turns out that this therapy cannot be used as a way to treat organic mercury poisoning, especially methylmercury.
Tips to prevent organic mercury poisoning from cosmetic products
In fact, exposure to whitening creams that contain organic mercury and can damage the central nervous system can be prevented by choosing beauty products carefully.
- Checks the product for a protective foil seal under the lid
- Buy a cream product from a licensed and reputedly safe store
- Avoid items that are recognized as homemade products, aka hand made
- Check back what ingredients are contained in it
- Use it in accordance with the rules that apply to the packaging
Not all whitening creams can damage your central nervous system. However, it doesn't hurt to be careful and check the contents listed on the packaging as a precautionary measure.
x