Lightenex Cream
Lightenex is a line of products designed to lighten the skin through the use of powerful exfoliates and whitening chemicals.
It is specifically designed to make the skin of Asian & Arabic people lighter and is advertised as being the product used by Middle Eastern Royal Families & Bollywood stars.
In addition to being used to “westernize” the skin, it also claims to lightens melasma & chloasma patches, (“pregnancy mask”) lighten hyperpigmentation, rid the skin of freckles, lightens liver and age spot, lightens under-eye dark circles, reduce fine lines & wrinkles, and even out skin tone.
What ingredients are in Lightenex?
Not all of the ingredients for this product are listed, but the active ingredients that are listed can be best described as a joke.
Kojic dipalmitate. This is not effective as a skin lightener . It can cause allergies and skin irritation.
Glycyrrhiza Glabra Extract. This is licorice. There is no research supporting that is effective as a skin lightener. It is taken as a pill or a liquid to treat some internal ills, but there is no evident supporting its use externally.
Imperata Cylindrica Extrac. This is also known as blady grass. It has some astringent qualities, but nothing that has been tested or shown to be produce any of the results listed.
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi L. Sprengel. Also know as Bearberry. Despite these extensive applications in folk medicine, there is no scientific evidence that any of them are effective. The reason it is an ingredient in this product is because it contains arbutin, which blocks melanin production, but research has shown that pure forms of arbutin are more effective as skin lighteners.
Daucus Carota Sativa (carrot) root extract. This is said to stimulate skin cell regeneration, however that is untested, and we have no way of knowing whether there is enough extract in this cream to be effective.
Mitracarpus Scaber Extract. This is another melanin inhibitor. Like bearberry, however, it is not as effective as pure arbutin.
Octocrylene. This is basically sun block that is linked to DNA damage and skin cancer.
What else should I know about Lightenex?
Don’t buy this product. It will not lighten, tighten, or whiten your skin.
