Two, that personal care product use, in some cases, can negatively impact health in a long-term irreversible way.

Two, that personal care product use, in some cases, can negatively impact health in a long-term irreversible way. 

 Skin lightening use has been studied, probably more so in other countries—it’s a globally pervasive practice. And in this country, it’s often immigrant populations that use these products. The population in northern Manhattan, South Bronx is ethnically diverse, culturally diverse, and there’s a big immigrant population. So we were also able to look at who’s using these products by country of origin, by race, ethnicity, etc., which also just adds to the literature around users of these products and potentially high-risk populations.

Your study noted that the use of these harmful beauty products represents “a growing public health concern.” What do you hope will be the main takeaways of this work?

One, that these products are minimally regulated. There’s not much of a safety net when it comes to personal care products. And I think often people assume that if you can find something in a store, it’s gone through a lot of scrutiny for health and safety concerns. But that’s not always the case.