NAFDAC Calls On Media To Take Up The Cause Of Banning The Use Of Bleaching Products.

Journalists around the nation have been asked by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to join the campaign to raise awareness of the risks associated with bleaching creams.

At a media awareness workshop on the risks of bleaching creams and regulatory controls that was organized for the Association of Nigerian Health Journalists, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, Director-General of NAFDAC, made the appeal.

The workshop, according to Adeyeye, aims to educate and encourage Nigerian health journalists to take the lead in the agency’s campaign to end the use of bleaching creams.

“In a letter to NAFDAC in 2022, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, emphasized the need to implement strict regulatory measures to address the widespread instances of certain Nigerians utilizing bleaching creams.

“We acted right away, seizing and destroying a significant amount of the illegal goods from the trade show.

Bleaching creams cause harm to the body’s critical organs, skin irritation, allergies, burns, rashes, wrinkles, and a delay in wound healing.

We don’t need to alter our color because black is lovely, she remarked.

According to her, the World Health Organization reported in 2018 that 77% of Nigerian women use bleeching cream, which is the highest percentage in Africa when compared to 59% in Togo.

In addition, the director-general said that Senegal had 27% and South Africa had 35%.