Women kick against ban on bleaching creams

Some women in Kano State have frowned at the decision of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to ban the importation and use of bleaching creams in the country.

The women, mostly young ones, told Freedom Radio, Kano, that they were using bleaching creams stylishly in a way that would not affect their skin as thought by NAFDAC, calling on them to consider reversing the policy.

Recall that last week, the Director General (DG) of NAFDAC, Professor Moji Christiana Adeyeye, said the agency had banned the importation of bleaching creams and urged collaboration of media outlets in the country to abrogate the use of such products for the safety of the human body.

She made the plea at a one-day media sensitisation workshop on the dangers of bleaching creams and regulatory control for media practitioners in the North West which was held in Kano, noting that 77 per cent of Nigerian women were using bleaching creams which put the country on the lead in Africa in such act.

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However, the Kano women said they were not happy with the decision, as it would affect their relationship with men.

One of the women said, “Most men nowadays prefer women with light skin; that is why we are using creams.

“It is not necessary that we are using the creams for bleaching, but just to beautify our faces. Some creams are used wisely in a way that may not even change the colour of our skin. It is just for beautification.”

Another woman, Jamila Usman, said, “Men prefer light skin girls. That is why almost all ladies are using creams in one way or the other. So, I think banning bleaching creams will expose our secrets and will put many relationships in danger.”