Belgium: A global study has found that a large number of whitening creams and other products contain dangerously high levels of mercury.
It should be noted that mercury is also called "liquid silver" because it is in liquid form at normal temperature.
Mercury is used in hundreds of products and instruments, from thermometers to dentistry, and from electrical appliances to cosmetics.
But there are safe limits to the use of mercury in each sector, subject to international law.
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The "safe amount" of mercury in cosmetic products is one fraction per million (1 ppm) or less. But a recent study in 17 countries found that 48% of whitening products contained much more mercury than safe levels.
The products are available on almost all major e-commerce platforms in the world, including Amazon and eBay, and are being purchased in over 100 countries, from the United States to Australia.
The research report was published by the Zero Mercury Working Group, an international organization working on mercury pollution, in collaboration with NGOs in different countries.
For the research, 271 bleaching products were purchased from 40 e-commerce platforms including Amazon, eBay and Ali Express and analyzed separately.
The analysis found that the mercury levels in 129 of these products were well above the safe limit of 1 ppm.
Another worrying revelation in the report is that 43% of high mercury products are either manufactured in Pakistan or packaged in Pakistan.
They also include the names of some of the famous Pakistani creams and other related products that whiten the complexion.
Not only that, but the mercury content in these bleaching products has been seen to be thousands of times higher than the safe limit, but, surprisingly, these products are also available uninterruptedly through e-commerce platforms in dozens of countries.
