非洲興起皮膚美白風潮 青少年正使用注射劑

Skin lightening is popular in many parts of the world, including South Asia and the Middle East.

皮膚美白在包括南亞和中東在內的世界許多地區都很受歡迎。

But medical experts say that in Africa -- a continent where regulations are lax or scorned -- the widening phenomenon is laden with health risks.

但醫學專家說，在監管鬆懈、執法不嚴的非洲大陸，這一日益流行的現象暗藏健康風險。

Africa is experiencing a "massive trend of increased use of skin bleaching, particularly in teenagers and young adults," said Lester Davids, a physiology professor at the University of Pretoria in South Africa.

南非比勒陀利亞大學生理學教授萊斯特·戴維斯表示：“非洲正經歷大規模使用皮膚漂白劑的趨勢，在青少年和年輕的成年人中這一趨勢更加明顯。”

"The older generation used creams -- the new generation uses pills and injectables," he said.

“老一代會使用面霜，新生代則選擇吃藥或打針。”

In Nigeria alone, 77% of women, more than 60 million people -- are using lightening products on a "regular basis", the World Health Organization said.

世界衛生組織表示，僅在尼日利亞，就有77%的女性，也就是超過6000萬人，定期使用美白產品。

The rich tend to opt for pricier registered products. Others are likely to buy creams, often bootleg concoctions mixed in the back streets, which may be dangerous.

富人們會選擇更昂貴的註冊產品，而其他人購買的面霜則通常是在幽暗小巷裏非法調製，安全係數低。

"These chemicals in the products damage respiratory, kidney and reproductive systems," an official from the Nigerian drug control agency warned. "They cause cancer, affect the nervous system, deform unborn babies."

尼日利亞藥物管理局的一位官員警告稱：“這些產品中的化學成分會對呼吸系統、腎臟以及生殖系統造成損害，還會導致癌症、影響神經系統、導致胎兒畸形。”