For dissection of a product claims, click fair n lovely

Fairness Creams are shallow and cheap formulations

1.    Just imagine for a moment looking at a woman with Western / white face and a brownish Indian body !

Have You come across any ? If not, fairness cream is a baseless, unproven product. Fairness Cream is a cheap and crude joke on the gullible public

They Shout and Loot: Fairness Creams, amongst Skin Care products, was the most advertised product segment on TV in India in the last year  -  Business Standard, 23rd April, 2007

Common Sense Plus - CSP

1 minute Clincher: Did any Indian prevent Hindustan Unilever in all these years from making a Fairness Soap so that Indians can become whiter. They do not yet make any such soap ! Why ? If the face can be whitened, so can the body. If not, not even the face.

Has Hindustan Lever, makers of Fairly & Lovely for over 30 years, produced a single proof till 2009 ?

Some Medical Opinions

Dr R K Pandhi, head, Department of Dermatology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, says that he "has never come across a medical study that substantiated such claims [of whitening] -

"Actually, these are drugs that are sold as cosmetics, to avoid legal control."  - view of  Anil Gangoo, president of Indian Association of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists

 

The truth behind whitening lotions and creams - article by Dr Parul Kolhe

28-6-2008 - Interested browsers can search 'truth of fairness creams' at  rediff.com. Dr. Parul  has written about some of the ingredients used in Fairness Creams and their limited / long term side effects 

 

Basic facts to recollect

The skin colour depends upon Heredity first. Black skinned persons produce black skinned babies, brown skinned persons only brown skinned babies and so on. There is no way to change the colour unless one goes for a Surgery like Mickhel Jackson, the singer.

 

Temperature in work areas

A farmer who has to work under the hot sun just cannot avoid becoming dark - his body produces more melanin as a protection against the Sun

A Lady who works in an Air Conditioned Office and does not have to go out in the hot Sun during the work hours, gradually becomes a bit more fair - less melanin is produced as these cells are activated by Sun Light

 

Exposure to the Sun / hot climate

Any Indian who wears a half sleeve shirt or normally uses a chappal, can note that the covered part by the cloth or leather is a bit more Fair compared to the nearby exposed part to the Sun

So one can easily become a bit fair or avoid getting further dark by using common sense and not getting fooled by fairness creams and SPF lotions.

Some Muslim Women wear burkhas / veils. You can note that that they are Fair in comparison to Males / females who do not cover their faces and living in the same region or locality

Some more simple counters to Fairness Creams Swindle

1.  There is no Medical or market proof so far that fairness creams work wonders

Companies like Hindustan Unilever operate across the World. And they sell their Fair and Lovely since 1978 or so. Has it helped any browny Indian to turn 'fair' ? If it had, they would be trumpeting that routinely as a Medical break through !

Source: Fourth Umpire - TV show by Fair & Lovely, after Nov 2004 Australia Versus India Cricket matches and also India versus Sri Lanka, October-November 2005 series

Model / commentator, who is supposed to have turned fair with the Cream, mentions of an appeal by the fielding side to the West Indian Umpire, Steve Buckner. And there is no response from Steve Buckner - [ West Indian Umpire ].

Unintended Humour and Rare truth combined in one ?

Source:  Laughter Challenge III in Star One - July 20, 2007. In the advertisement, the model suggests the application of Fair and Lovely - draw No 8 on the face ?

Just think for a minute. Can No 8 cover the entire area of the face ? It cannot. So what are they trying to convey ? It does not matter what area you apply and what areas you leave out by drawing 8 or whatever ?

The product cannot do anything much ! That is what it says to me. How about You ?

Common Note for this section on 26th October, 2011

1  Rule of the Land: The Supreme Court of India had ruled that "the object is to bring honesty and truth in the relationship between the manufacturer and the consumer" and held that " if the general impression conveyed is false, the  most punctilious and scrupulous accuracy in immaterial minutiae will not render the representations true."  This is often violated in the real World. Until caught, I am honest is the posture of many scoundrels, who flout the spirit of the law and dupe the Public

 

 

	Errors and Omissions exempted.  If there be any unwanted oversights, mistake in content or suggestions for improvements,  I will be thankful for your feedback
	Personal website of R. Ranganathan M.Sc., [ MBA - IIMA]    Main / original content: after 2002: last minor modification, Dec 24,  2011