Jenny’s Glow is an 'organic' skincare brand with a long list of influencers and celebrities on its roster.
Some of her whitening products include Oshaprapra soap, oil and lotion, half-cast body lotion, and snow white set amongst others. She has other products for dark skin which do not whiten.
A Twitter user made a long thread about some of the products, calling the popular Instagram vendor for selling bleaching products.
Jenny's Glow went live on Instagram to address some of the accusations, according to her, her products whiten and do not bleach.
“Half the messages in my DMS are about how people want to whiten their skins. Women do not want to accept their flaws, they want their faces to look perfect all the time. Sometimes, I break out when I am stressed.”
“All the foreign products you use work the same way. You have to rub them many times in a day.” She said.
“No one is forcing you to use Jenny’s glow. Use what works for you.”
She spoke about how people were hating on her business and the reason why the products don’t seem to work is people don’t follow instructions.
“You want to be fair, but you have stretch marks, you don’t know, the stretch mark will show?” She said.
Jenny also admitted that her products are ‘strong’ and should be used in moderation. She also said her office has some dermatologists.
Her page is filled with strong warnings and advice for people who want to whiten their skin.
We did some research on the content of some of her products and found out that they indeed contain glutathione and Kojic acid — both active skin whitening agents.
Glutathione inhibits the production of melanin and it should be used in small doses, or it might trigger an allergic reaction.
Kojic acid is a bleaching agent and contains similar components to the very dangerous hydroquinone that has been banned in some countries.
Is there any difference between bleaching and whitening?
You have to understand what bleaching is. Whitening and bleaching the skin are the same thing. ‘I don’t bleach, I whiten’ is tautologous.
"Skin whitening, also known as skin lightening and skin bleaching, is the practice of using chemical substances in an attempt to lighten the skin or provide an even skin colour by reducing the melanin concentration in the skin," Wikipedia explains.
Toning is different, it is cleansing your skin and shrinking your pores so you can have an ‘even’ complexion and not a lighter one. Products that have Kojic acid and Glutathione are not toners.
What makes a product organic?
That the vendor mixes the product herself or himself does not make it organic. Organic skincare is plant-based. So, we are talking about aloe vera, coconut oil, jojoba oil, almond oil, tea tree oil, etc.
Using chemicals to make your products does make them bad so far the chemicals aren’t harsh to the skin - but then it isn't organic.
If there are bad reviews, why do people still use these products?
Colourism. How many times have we heard someone saying things like, “she is only fine because she is fair?’
In a way, we tend to attach beauty to light skin and then wonder why most people will go to any length to be lighter.
Effects of bleaching
According to the thread from the Twitter user mentioned earlier in this piece; ”the number of women who I’ve seen use these products… end up with Steroidal acne." These are those red spots gotten from using bleaching creams.
"Thinner skin with awfully slow wound healing, gigantic stretch marks, medium/severe hyperpigmentation can not be overemphasized.”
Bleaching your skin might seem like a good idea at first, but it will lead to dire consequences.
Many people who use these harsh products don't use sunscreen and this causes hyperpigmentation, redness or soreness in the long run.
In saner climes, drug testing and approvals need to be carried out before skincare shipments are made to the public. When adverse reaction are noticed, many of the products are recalled.
“If it isn’t working for you, stop it” does not suffice for the immense duty of care naturally placed on a manufacturer of products like hers.
Skincare is a science and medicine that should only be done by professionals. How many professionals are involved in making these products? I asked this question on her live when she was talking about skincare products for pregnant women, and I was blocked immediately.
The owner of Jenny’s Glow should know that people are not just blatantly against her products. If people are reacting to them negatively, then she needs to do something about it.