Thursday, 2010-02-04
A recent article on GMANews.TV scrutinized the obsession of Pinoys to attain lighter skin complexion.
In the article, journalist Tina Arceo-Dumlao, cited a survey conducted by Synovate, which reveals that “two out of five women in Hong Kong, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines and Taiwan feel they are more attractive with fair complexions.” The results even highlighted the fact that the Philippines had the highest usage among the countries included in the survey.
From a business standpoint, the growing market is great news for us. But it doesn’t necessarily make things easier!
With so many companies jumping on the bandwagon, it gets harder for the authorities to monitor and keep up with all the products out there, making the hunt for a safe and effective whitening product harder for the average consumer.
Some manufacturers offer cheaper but unsafe alternatives, and to add to it, fly-by-night vendors mislead customers by misrepresenting some known brands and labeling fake products.
As a vendor of products that can lighten skin, we do find the topic very interesting. We’ve had several customers who’ve been victimized one way or another.
Victim or not, we’d love to hear your thoughts too. Do you know of a product that’s unsafe or mislabeled?
Post your comments and tell us about it!
7 Comments | 
General ramblings | Tagged: Diana Stalder, fake, safety, scam, skin lightening, skin lightening products, skin whitening, skin whitening products, unlabeled, unsafe | 
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Posted by pgesmundo
Saturday, 2010-01-23
In connection to our previous post on the dangers of hydroquinone (HQ) and mercury, here’s further evidence on the importance of using only trusted and regulated products.
Recently, the New York Times published an article about how illegal, unsafe skin lightening creams are easily accessible to the consumers. Skin lightening creams containing dangerous ingredients like steroids in very strong doses, corticosteroids such as clobetasol propionate, HQ, and even mercury can be purchased online or in beauty product stores.
Numerous stores in cities such as New York, Miami and Chicago are actually aware they are selling items that should either be doctor prescribed or containing illegal substances. A majority of the victims are women of Hispanic, Indian and African decent, trying to lighten or even out their skin color.
As the article points out, sometimes safe and legal versions of the genuine product are available, however illegal counterfeit versions being sold under the names Fair & White, L’Abidjanaise and Hyprogel can often be found with dangerous, illegal ingredients. According to dermatologists, these products can present serious side effects from severe acne to more serious problems like damaging the nervous system.
We take your safety very seriously at SouthGain. This is why we sell only genuine products that do not contain HQ, mercury, steroids or other dangerous ingredients.
Leave a Comment » | General ramblings | Tagged: hydroquinone, illegal, mercury, skin lightening, unregulated products | Permalink
Posted by pgesmundo
Saturday, 2010-01-16
A wide variety of skin lightening products contains hydroquinone (HQ) and mercury as active ingredients. The combination of the two is said to slow down the creation of melanin, which causes age spots, freckles, melasma and other types of skin discoloration.
On the downside, these two ingredients are known to have severe side effects. Mercurcy is especially dangerous, and almost universally outlawed in skin care products because of serious health risks associated with it. Hydroquinone is a little more controversial, with many countries allowing its use at various concentration levels, but others banning it outright.
Even if you aren’t concerned about the health risks, you will probably find that these ingredients often result in the infamous "rebound effect"—if you stop using the product, your melanin production may actually start progressing much faster and result in more skin pigmentation.
Genuine Diana Stalder Whitening and Lightening Products do NOT use Hydroquinone or Mercurcy
The Diana Stalder Surely White Whitening Regimen Kit and the Diana Stalder Surely White Body Bleaching Kit contain products that use arbutin, which is a more modern skin de-pigmentation and whitening agent.
Arbutin is believed by many experts to be much safer than traditional old-fashioned hydroquinone. Arbutin is a glycosylated derivative of HQ, and it naturally occurs in the bearberry plant, wheat and pear skins. The experts believe it is less prone to side effects than traditional HQ because it is more gradually released through hydrolysis.
Arbutin naturally whitens or lightens the skin, infiltrating without affecting the process of cell multiplication. Arbutin works by effectively inhibiting tyrosinase, which is an enzyme that catalyzes the biosynthesis of melanin, which is the main cause of skin darkening. Arbutin also protects the skin against damage caused by free radicals.
Leave a Comment » | Diana Stalder products, General ramblings | Tagged: arbutin, Diana Stalder, health risks, HQ, hydroquinone, mercury, rebound effect, safety, skin lightening, skin whitening, unsafe | Permalink
Posted by pgesmundo
Tuesday, 2009-11-10
This is a question we receive fairly often. We’ve covered it in the FAQ (www.DianaStalder.info), but thought it would be good to address the topic here on the blog as well.
In short, Diana Stalder skin whitening and lightening products work by inhibiting the formation of melanin in various ways. Melanin is the color pigment of the skin. Melanin is synthesized in specialized cytoplasmic organelles called melanosomes. Within the melanosome, the conversion of the amino acid tyrosine to melanin is catalyzed by the enzyme tyrosinase. The melanosomes in darker portions of the skin are more active than those found in other areas of the body. Most of the key ingredients in these products either inhibit the production of tyrosinase or inhibit melanosomal activity. Some of the products also promote exfoliation, removing the outer layers of skin to expose the whiter you, hiding below!
If you have specific questions that we can’t answer directly, we’re always happy to talk with the staff pharmacists, the R&D team, the regulatory compliance manager, or anyone else at the Stalder factory or headquarters and get you an answer.
Leave a Comment » | Diana Stalder products | Tagged: Diana Stalder, efficacy, exfoliation, melanin, skin lightening, skin whitening | Permalink
Posted by SouthGain
Tuesday, 2009-05-12
Despite the sensitive nature of the topic, this is actually one of the more common questions we receive, and we probably should have written a blog post on this topic long before now. For many customers—both women and men—the bikini line is a particularly problematic area for dark skin tone. Often, this includes a wider area of the inner thighs, pubic region, anus and generally anywhere around those “private” parts. So you’re definitely not alone!
Now, what to do about it? Is it safe to use Diana Stalder skin whitening or skin lightening products in these areas? What are the best options?
First, Diana Stalder products can be used externally all over the body. Generally speaking, the creams are designed for use on the face, while the lotions are designed for use on the rest of the body. But these are just general guidelines. Any Diana Stalder product can be used safely anywhere external on the body. The creams and lotions should not be used internally, particularly on the female genitalia. It’s O.K. to wash thoroughly with any of the soaps, although many users will find their “private areas” particularly sensitive when using the Papaya Kojic Soap.
There are several good approaches to these problem areas, and the best choice for you depends on your particular skin type, your specific problem areas, your goals, your timeline and your budget. One good choice is the Surely White Body Bleaching Kit, or at least the Surely White Body Whitening Lotion and one of the whitening soaps (usually either the Papaya Kojic Soap or the Glutathione Soap if your skin is particularly sensitive).
Another option to consider is the Surely White Whitening Cream—it’s normally intended for the face, and expensive to use on large areas, but can be ideal for the inner thighs and bikini area. Again, for best results, use this in combination with one of the whitening soaps.
Finally, a common “trick” used by many of our customers is to apply the Deo Roll-On around the bikini line area. After showering, towel dry, apply the Surely White Body Whitening Lotion or Surely White Whitening Cream, wait about 5 minutes, then use the Deo Roll-On. Give it a try!
As always, if you have any questions, feel free to send an e-mail to us at SouthGain@SouthGain.com. Don’t worry—no question is too crazy or should be too embarassing to ask. Rest assured we handle sensitive customer questions like these every day, and we always treat them with complete privacy and the highest level of professionalism.
2 Comments | Diana Stalder products, SouthGain.com web store | Tagged: anus, bikini, cream, Diana Stalder, genitals, kojic, lotion, papaya, pubic, roll-on, skin lightening, skin whitening, thighes | Permalink
Posted by SouthGain
Wednesday, 2008-12-17
One of the questions we are most often asked is “what is the difference between your skin ‘whitening’ products and your skin ‘lightening’ products?” The truth is, these terms are often used interchangeably. But with Diana Stalder skin care products, these terms have a very distinct meaning.
In short, Diana Stalder “lightening” products–the Surely White Lightening Cream and the Surely White Lightening Lotion–are specifically formulated to even out skin tone. These products are ideal for melasma, hyperpigmentation, dark spots, age spots, and even lightening freckles.
The Diana Stalder “whitening” products–Surely White Whitening Cream and Surely White Body Whitening Lotion–are designed for overall skin whitening. You should use these products when you want to transform your skin to a new, whiter shade.
It’s really that simple! Remember, the creams are primarily intended for your face and neck, while the lotions are primarily to be used on the rest of your body. If you would like to whiten your skin, but you are also suffering from melasma or other forms of hyperpigmentation, we suggest first using the lightening products to even out your skin tone, then switching to the whitening products.
Of course, all these products are available in our store. If you have any questions, feel free to drop us a note or use the comments feature below.
Leave a Comment » | Diana Stalder products | Tagged: Diana Stalder, hyperpigmentation, melasma, skin lightening, skin whitening | Permalink
Posted by SouthGain
