Darker Skinned to whiter complexion: No right to distress any of Allah's creatures

Recently, I visited a patient in one of the hospitals in Mogadishu. During my visit, I met with a 20-year-old girl in the same room who had injured her leg. It seemed to me that her injury was minor. I looked at her and asked how she was doing and how many days she was in the hospital. It was a surprise to me what happened to her, and how the wound had spread. After evaluating it, I can say that the metal is just scratched. That day was her 12th day in the hospital. Then, her doctor came, and I followed him and asked what made the wound so big. He told me this girl is the 4th time I am treating her injury. This girl uses skin-whitening products. I asked: Did you tell her about the dangers? "Yes," he answered. Why didn't you give advice? I added. He said, I gave her enough advice, but why should she not take the advice?

Bleaching, whitening, lightening, whatever you call it, the business of cosmetics rises. Creams, pills, and surgical treatments are used across continents by darker-skinned ethnicities hoping for a whiter complexion. But the problem, like most of those thrown up by the cosmetic industry, is often seen as large as the concern of women.  

Every time ignorance increases, it results in problems that leave a bad mark on the human being, be it the future of a person's life, health, or finances. There are many new things in the culture that Somalis did not use to have in the past. New Somali culture, whether it is bad or good, may have an effect. If one of the Somali women uses whitening products, many wills/are imitating what she used without looking at the harm or benefit.

I was compelled to pick up the pen to write about the problem of lighting cosmetics for women in general, especially Somalis.

Qasil (Gob powder), Huruud (Turmeric powder), Cusbur (Sandalwood) Milk cream, honey, and many more. All these natural plants are the beauty secrets that Somali women are famous for. but, now it seems that all that is being moved away to something dangerous to a person's skin, which can cause skin cancer. Markets selling these products are crowded every day, even to the point where there are long queues to get in. Some may come early in the morning and leave later because of their busy schedule.

Once I went to the busiest places where these products are sold I met someone who was served $150 for three creams. People who own these stores make more than $+500k per month which is unusual. There are expensive ones that not all girls can afford. Some people order from other countries by charging more money than the official amount.

So, why do Somali women bleach their skin?

They often give a short example and answer when you ask, that the black person is not considered; she gets more confidence from the white skin; in terms of marriage, the black girl is more fortunate than the white girl and many Somali people believe that the most beautiful girl should be white. This dispels the saying that black is an immutable color and also the color that the Somali girls were famous for as a sand snake which is pretty. Some of the over-the-counter medications are meant to treat allergies and skin infections, and others are dangerous to the user's body. These answers cannot be an excuse for something that is not pleasing to Allah and endangering your life.                    

Skin bleaching is not medically necessary but is something people choose to do for cosmetic reasons. Some people use it to lighten melisma, blemishes, and age spots, while others try to use it to alter their skin tone. People may feel this will make them more attractive or more confident.

It isn't easy to pinpoint how many people are using skin lighteners – legal or otherwise – in Somalia, but around the world, the skin-lightening business is booming. In 2017, the global skin-lightening industry was worth $4.8bn (£3.4bn), and it is projected to grow to $8.9bn by 2027. Skin-lightening products include creams, scrubs, pills, and even injections designed to slow the production of melanin. Many of these are created by pharmaceutical giants such as Unilever, Proctor and Gamble, and L’Oreal and come with massive marketing budgets.https://tinyurl.com/xjwferu 

Often these products are dangerous and cause serious problems to the health of the person who consumes them and can lead to serious diseases, for example, skin cancer, skin turning dark or too light, thinning of the skin, visible blood vessels in the skin, and scarring, kidney, liver, or nerve damage, abnormalities in a newborn baby (if used during pregnancy) numbness, high blood pressure, fatigue, sensitivity to light, neurologic symptoms, such as tremors, memory loss, irritability, kidney failure, and many more.

Convincingly, first of all, it is a sin for someone to change the color that Allah has given to change, it is a waste of money, it will harm the person, and your marriage does not depend on whether you are light or dark. Allah created us and He is in control of us. Allah created us most beautifully. The trust you seek in the white is not trusting.

Black is always elegant;