Latest update: 21/02/2012 

- Australia - France - health - UK - USA


Beauty at any cost

Keeping up appearances is both expensive and time-consuming, but it can also be dangerous for our health. From fillers and fake tans to skin and teeth whitening, this week we check out the health risks involved with looking good.

By Claire WILLIAMS / Lara MELLOUL / Mairead DUNDAS / Marina BERTSCH

Could facial fillers be the next global health scandal after the P.I.P. implants? In the UK the market is poorly regulated - underqualified beauticians can buy fillers from the internet and administer them themselves.

Who's the fairest of us all? French authorities are clamping down on the use of illegal skin whitening creams. While some can be bought legally at pharmacies and beauty shops, others are harmful to health and only available on the black market.

Finally, dentists are clenching their teeth as "teeth whitening bars" pop up across France - they warn of the risks of allowing beauticians, rather than trained dentists, to bleach our teeth.


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