Medina Mashano

This Nigerian mother used skin lightening creams on all six of her children, which she says burnt their skin.

Her story is part of a growing trend in Africa, says medical aesthetician and campaigner Zeynep Beshiriyaou.

Long-term use of skin lightening products can have serious consequences.

Common bleaching ingredients include steroids, mercury, hydroquinone and kojic acid. Many of these are banned or tightly regulated by Nigeria's food and drug regulator, NAFDAQ, especially in children's products. Despite tight regulations, these bleaching creams are still easily accessible.

For example, in this supermarket in Kano State, when I picked up one of the creams that says baby bleaching cream, I noticed that many of the ingredients here are illegal substances. I met one mother in the market buying bleaching creams for her kids, despite her own hands being discolored by them.

Many shopkeepers here, who were not identifying for their safety, mixed their own creams from raw ingredients. It wasn't clear how precisely they were measuring the bleaching chemicals.

Some sellers I spoke to admitted they were not aware of all the NAFDAG rules. NAFDAG has regulated the use of kojic acid. You can now only use a certain percentage. Did you know that? No, I didn't. But now that you've told me about it, now I know. I asked NAFDAG what it's doing to educate sellers.

Why isn't NAVDAC doing enough? Since sensitization is clearly not working.

With so many producers and such high demand, the challenges are vast.

For this message to be heard, it needs to break through deeply entrenched views on skin color. Until it does, the health of many children may yet be put at risk.