At the international level, on June 11, 2010, a PR Newswire story reported that representatives of 132 countries, meeting under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme, paved the way toward a treaty to control mercury pollution. The gathering, dubbed the first Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) meeting, in Stockholm, has set the stage for developing the text of the treaty, the drafting of which will begin at the next INC meeting in Tokyo in January 2011. At the June meeting, a World Health Organization representative stated that the goal will be to halt production of skin-lightening cosmetics that contain mercury. Five INC meetings are expected to convene to complete the treaty before 2013.
Conclusion
It is incumbent upon dermatologists to use all of the tools in their arsenal to convince patients to accept their skin tone as it is. In other words, we should discourage those who attempt to lighten their skin for reasons not pertaining to correcting dyspigmentation, just as we discourage patients seeking to tan or darken their skin.
For patients resistant to such advice or cajolery, practitioners must warn them about using skin-lightening products that contain mercury and recommend alternative lightening agents. Clearly, formulations containing mercury, though banned in the United States, are becoming increasingly available, and as over-the-counter products they are not tightly regulated. These products pose a serious health risk.