Mercury Cream Can Cause Irritation Of Facial Skin, Beauty Experts Reveal Signs

Illustration (Ekaterina Bolovtsova/Pexels)

JAKARTA - Dermatologist and genital specialist dr. Listya Paramita, Sp. KK describes a number of signs of skin damage that can occur due to the use of creams containing mercury.

"The signs that appear are not specific, but sometimes the signs of damage are often ignored and considered a "natural process" or a process that consumers need to go through to change to white skin," said the doctor who graduated from Gadjah Mada University (UGM) in the event " Advance Training Ambassador" Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) program that was quoted by ANTARA, Tuesday, July 19.

The reactions that may appear include dry, rough, peeling skin, redness, burning, sometimes itching, sometimes hot, and much more sensitive to sun exposure.

“They (consumers) understand that there are signs that something is wrong. But when asked to the seller, he was answered with, 'It's okay, the process to become white has to go through like that first,' said Listya.

Listya emphasized that the mercury content in cosmetics has been strictly prohibited by the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM). However, she noted that illegal cosmetic products are still circulating in the market, such as through the marketplace.

“When someone uses illegal products and does not have a BPOM distribution permit, the risk is big, especially skin damage in the future. So it's a long-term effect," she said.

Listya explained that mercury can indeed give an instant white effect, but it should be noted that this ingredient causes long-term damage. The instant white effect occurs because of the peeling of the skin's epidermis caused by mercury chloride compounds.

Then the mercury amino chloride compound will also inactivate the sulfhydryl mercatan enzyme in the skin which also inhibits the tyrosinase enzyme and leads to the inhibition of melanin formation. If the use of mercury cosmetics is continued, Listya continued, skin damage will occur over time, such as dermatitis, hypo or hyperpigmentation, baboon syndrome, persistent erythema, and systemic disorders.

"When used long term, the damage or disturbance is not only local (occurring) in the skin but can be systemic, meaning that it is absorbed deeper into the blood vessels, damaging other organs," she said.

Systemic disorders that can appear include kidney damage, damage to the digestive tract, damage to the brain, to impaired fetal development when mercury cosmetics are used in pregnant women. Listya said the severity of the side effects of mercury has different levels, depending on the concentration, duration, and frequency of using mercury on the skin. The process of healing and recovering patients can take a long time and cost a lot of money.

According to Listya, treatment for patients is individual or handled on a case-by-case basis considering that the reaction and condition of the damage may differ from one patient to another.

“If the problem is limited to the skin, it will usually be treated by a dermatologist. But if there is a systemic disorder that involves other organs, it will usually be treated with other specialists," she said.

Although patients can get treatment, Listya said that skin damage caused by mercury cannot be recovered 100 percent or is very difficult to treat.

"So it's better to prevent it and don't use mercury creams because it's clearly proven to be dangerous," she said.