Most people have used bleach as a common household cleaning tool at some point or another, but now it is also being used as a beauty ingredient! After researchers at Stanford University suggested that bleach could have anti-aging benefits, reports of woman undergoing "bleach facials" are now popping up on social media.
OK, I've seen and heard of a lot of absurd beauty fads in my day, but this might seriously be the craziest yet!
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After conducting preliminary tests on mice, scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine said that if bleach worked similarly in humans, it could provide a new way to treat skin damaged by radiation therapy, sun exposure, or aging. Considering how inexpensive the chemical is and easy availablity, that could mean big things for the beauty industry.
But it's not as simple as just pouring out some bleach and slapping it on your face. The process only works if it's the exact percentage the scientists used (around .005 percent), which is pretty much impossible for us non-chemists to measure out on our own. Any higher concentration can burn your skin or cause severe damage.
Perhaps it's because I'm not a beauty aficionado or maybe I'm just a plain ol' skeptic, but this sounds absolutely insane to me. Why on earth would you put BLEACH—which has words like "toxic" and "corrosive" printed clearly on its warning label—anywhere on your body, let alone on your face?! That's even more ridiculous than the notion of bleaching down there.
I don't care what researchers say about its anti-aging abilities, I don't think I would ever even consider trying a bleach facial. Honestly, they could tell me it'll give me the ability to sprout wings and fly and I still wouldn't want the chemical anywhere near my skin. It's dangerous and potentially lethal and should be treated as such. Plus, there are plenty of natural and actually healthy ingredients that are just as effective at preserving smooth skin!
The truth is, I'm all for trying out new beauty methods, but only if it's safe…and I'm not buying that "bleach facials" are at all. Even the scientists who created it made sure to issue a disclaimer, specifying that this shouldn't be tried at home. I just really hope that people out there actually listen to them!
Image via Thinkstock
