No fairness creams without prescription

Soon, fairness creams will not be sold without a prescription, owing to the presence of harmful steroids.

The Central government, after consulting the Drugs Technical Advisory Board, has included 14 steroids in the Schedule H category of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rule, 1945. According to the dermatologist association, these are strong steroids with various side-effects, and need to be used only under prescription.

The list includes names such as Beclomethasone, Betamethasone, Desonide, Desoximethasone, among others. Most fairness creams, aggressively endorsed by celebrities, contain these steriods, as do other medicinal creams.

Mahatrashtra's dermatologists association wrote to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over two years ago, asking for a ban on creams that contain a combination of strong steroids to be sold over the counter.

"It is good that these 14 types of steroids are now part of schedule H," said Dr Vikrant Saoji, president of Indian Association of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists (Maharashtra). "It is a step ahead and the FDA should keep a check on the implementation of the rule well. The steroids are the main cause of pigment disorder. They are medicines and need a presciption."

"The schedule H steroid cream will have distinctive labelling," FDA Joint Commissioner (HQ) Amrut Nikhade said, "A red mark on the label will differentiate it. It will take time for manufactures to label the creams accordingly."

"There is a big problem of misusing such creams for skin whitening," said Dr Saoji.

Fair Call

The list of regulated steriods includes Beclomethasone, Betamethasone, Desonide, Desoximethasone, among others. Most fairness creams, aggressively endorsed by celebrities, contain them.