# data[].attributes.body
Tammy Hembrow is a 24-year-old Australian Instagram Influencer whose popularity has skyrocketed in America due to her slim but curvy figure and her facial features. Tammy has a very thin waist while sporting the hourglass curves coveted by Western beauty culture and she also is known lately for her lip and facial fillers which enhance her cheekbones. In addition to her figure, Hembrow's skin is tan, her hair is blonde and she is rarely seen on social media without heavy makeup.

# data[].attributes.body
This picture is of Kayla Itsines, an online personal trainer and coach. She possesses a different body type than Tammy Hembrow, but this ideal is still a popular one seen in Western culture. Her build is overall slimmer and much less focused on curves than Hembrow's, and she is slightly more athletic-looking. As well as a slim, 'toned' body, Itsines also possesses a long, straight hair and face with high cheekbones, and very straight, white teeth.

# data[].attributes.body
This video is a makeup tutorial describing how to "contour" one's face. Contouring has become extremely popular in Western culture and allows for the definition of different facial features such as thinning the nose, highlighting cheek bones and the appearance of fuller lips. Contouring takes a lot of effort, time and makeup making it yet another expensive and time-consuming way to achieve Western beauty standards.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
HOW I CONTOUR & HIGHLIGHT! | Carli Bybel

# data[].attributes.body
This video depicts a show, 'Botched' which is based on a plastic surgery clinic in California. This episode focuses on few people who are essentially trying to become human dolls - the epitome of "perfection". The man in this video strives to become a walking 'Ken doll' with a chiseled jaw and flowing blonde hair, while the women (also blonde) go to extreme lengths (like removing ribs) to achieve an hourglass figure like Barbie would have. These are just some of the examples of extreme measures some people will take to achieve the beauty standards we expect in Western culture.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Meet the World's Extreme 'Human Dolls' | Compilation | Botched

# data[].attributes.body
This video discusses the issue of North American People of Colour and how their skin colour affects how society (both American and Globally) views them. The interviewees talk about how their skin colour is seen in America, how being darker is linked to many stereotypes and how prevalent whitewashing is on how an Americans with different skin tones are affected by it. They also reflect on what is deemed beautiful in their home countries, and how lighter skin is always seen as "better" and more "beautiful".

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What Dark-Skinned People Will Never Tell You

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
These standards of beauty travel. You Do You is back: Bigger, Better, Violetier! Buy it now!: https://bnc.lt/m/ZVdrhAYkyu Check out more awesome videos at BuzzFeedVideo! http://bit.ly/YTbuzzfeedvideo GET MORE BUZZFEED: www.buzzfeed.com/videoteam www.facebook.com/buzzfeedvideo www.instagram.com/buzzfeedvideo www.buzzfeed.com/video www.youtube.com/buzzfeedvideo www.youtube.com/buzzfeedyellow www.youtube.com/buzzfeedblue www.youtube.com/buzzfeedviolet BUZZFEED VIDEO BuzzFeed Motion Picture's flagship channel. Sometimes funny, sometimes serious, always shareable.

# data[].attributes.headline
Eastern Beauty - Chinese Facial Beauty Standards

# data[].attributes.subject
Eastern Beauty - Chinese Facial Beauty Standards

# data[].attributes.body
A huge part of attaining the ideal beauty standards in Chinese culture involves plastic surgery. Eyelid, nose and jaw reconstruction surgery is often performed to create a more "Westernized" appearance.

# data[].attributes.headline
Eastern Beauty - A Look at Asian Beauty vs. North American Beauty Standards

# data[].attributes.subject
Eastern Beauty - A Look at Asian Beauty vs. North American Beauty Standards

# data[].attributes.body
Three people who have lived in both Asia and America look at the beauty standards in both areas and what people are attracted to in both Eastern Culture and Western Culture. They include the male gaze (one of the people in the panel is male)and how how that affects the way women present themselves.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
EAST or WEST: Which Beauty Standard Is Better?

# data[].attributes.headline
Eastern Beauty - China's Skinny Challenges

# data[].attributes.subject
Eastern Beauty - China's Skinny Challenges

# data[].attributes.body
The Chinese culture embraces the skinny fragile look in women. The cute, innocent, skinny, soft look is what men find most "beautiful" and attractive when they are looking at the opposite sex. Celebrities use their social media to challenge other women to see if they fit the ideal body type leading to drastic trends that can lead to extremes such as body modification and eating disorders.

# data[].attributes.body
This article focuses on a few of the various beauty standards we have in Western culture such as thinness, fairness and aspects of facial beauty and how damaging they can be when portrayed in the media. This article also portrays the lengths people will go to portray or achieve these standards such as plastic surgery and skin lightening.

# data[].attributes.headline
Western Beauty - Viewed by Other Cultures

# data[].attributes.subject
Western Beauty - Viewed by Other Cultures

# data[].attributes.body
This article analyzes North American beauty standards from the view of different cultures around the world. Often what we see as normal in our North American beauty standards may seem drastic to people from other parts of the world.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In a number of ways it seems as though we're broadening our horizons every day, but Americans tend to have preferred standards when it comes to beauty. As with so many other cultural norms, some people in other countries don't understand them and actually think they're just plain weird.

Each and every country has its own standards when it comes to beauty, and the United States is no different. In fact, it's often one of the first things people from the States notice when visiting other countries-that those who live there don't pay as much attention to things that we wouldn't leave the house without doing.

Believe it or not, people from other countries not only don't focus on these aspects of beauty, but they also think it's pretty strange that we do. Here are some of the most common trends when it comes to American beauty standards that other countries just don't understand.

Tanning

Some Americans wouldn't even dream of leaving the house without some sort of color to their skin, and the thought of going to a big event without getting a tan first is basically unimaginable.

Although using a tanning bed has been deemed unsafe for many years, we've found our way around it with inventions like at-home tanning kits and spray tan salons. With something that is such a huge industry in the U.S., you might be surprised to hear that people in some other countries think artificially tanned skin is pretty strange.

In particular, many Japanese women find it weird that American women would actually want tan skin. Pay a visit to any Japanese beach and you'll notice that women are often wearing long sleeves and hats, not to cover themselves up for modesty, but because they don't want their skin touched by the sun.

The same standard of having creamy-looking light skin is also present in countries like Thailand and South Korea, where women also think tanning is basically insanity. In fact, you might be hard pressed to find skincare products that don't have some kind of lightening agent in them.

White Teeth

There are a million different products out there to help with getting whiter teeth-from strips to gels, pastes, and even teeth-brightening devices.

If you use Instagram, you've also probably noticed that any Insta-famous person you follow will likely promote some type of whitening gadget every now and then because it's something that's become that important to us. Other countries, though? Not so much.

Americans often have preconceived and judgmental notions about British teeth. So it may come as no surprise that Brits also have their own thoughts about American teeth-mainly how straight and blindingly white they tend to be.

The American standard is obviously based completely on looks, because it's actually been proven that teeth that are a bit yellow are actually stronger and healthier than super white teeth.

Extremely Thin Bodies

For as long as most anyone can remember, super thin has been the body type to strive for in America. Models are generally always waify, and it seems like almost the only celebrities who actually make it big are the ones who are very lean.

But this isn't the standard of perfection everywhere. Beauty expert Michelle Phan has said that in certain countries, the obsession with being stick thin is unheard of.

In the African country of Mauritania, for instance, Phan she says that being a little bit overweight is actually preferred. It's something that's often associated with wealth and fertility, which makes it a more ideal body type in that culture.

We want t0 be clear that we're not telling anyone what their body should or shouldn't look like, but don't think that being thin is the only way to live your happiest life.

Full Lips and Big Butts

In our Kardashian-obsessed culture, it's not that surprising that lots of women are constantly working toward a bigger butt, smaller waist, and fuller lips.

It's actually become somewhat normal to see even "regular" people adopt this type of aesthetic, because there are endless tips, products, and procedures to help us get this look. There are many cultures out there that aren't into it, though.

South Korea is one country that just doesn't understand the hype surrounding lush booties and full lips. There are even reaction videos in which Korean people look at images of the Kardashians, and they appear to be pretty shocked because it's not at all what they're used to seeing.

Heavy Makeup

There are many American women out there whose goal is to have makeup that's done so flawlessly that it looks professionally airbrushed.

Although it's not necessarily a bad look-or even a bad thing to want, other countries tend to go for a more natural look and find the obsession with daily glam makeup a little weird.

Laura Mercier, owner of the French skincare line of the same name, has seen the differences between makeup in France and America firsthand. "It really astonishes me the way American women wear so much makeup," she said.

"French women are not flashy. They must be subtle. The message must not be, 'I'm spending hours on my face to look beautiful.'"

Revealing Clothing

It's no secret that there are many women in America-and around the world-who love to wear clothes that show off the goods.

We say flaunt it if you feel comfortable doing it, but there are some countries that don't know how to react when someone dons something revealing.

In Japan, for example, if you run into an older man while you're wearing a tank top, it's likely that he won't meet your eyes. Even a visible collarbone might be considered too sexual for some.

Overly Groomed Brows

There's no doubt that your eyebrows really complete your face, and a bad shape can change your look for the worse.

Americans, however, seem to have taken their brow routine to the extreme, drawing on and carving out brows so sharp that you might be afraid they could cut you. This isn't the style everywhere, though.

That's not to say that women elsewhere don't groom their brows at all, but they do tend to strive for a more natural look.

People in many other countries, such as South Korea, don't go for an intensely arched brow, instead going for a brow that's straighter. Thicker brows are still popular in places like Indonesia, but women tend to keep them more natural and dense looking.

Salons for Everything

It seems like any city in America truly does have a salon that's dedicated to anything and everything you could want. From a salon that just does eyebrow threading to another that just does blowouts, the possibilities are endless when it comes to finding a professional to fulfill any grooming-related needs you have.

When it comes to something like a blowout, though, other countries aren't on board. According to British writer Suzanne Jannese, Americans "seem to spend an unholy amount of time being groomed: blow-dry salons and making time in your day to get your nails done and hair coiffed. Why? You're just gonna sleep on it and wake up with a bird's nest the next morning."

We can definitely understand it to some degree. Sometimes you just want to look bomb, but you don't have the necessary hairstyling skills to do it yourself. For a special occasion, it can be worth spending more to save yourself the stress. Getting a blowout just to get one, though? Yeah. We'll save our money for something that'll last a little longer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
8 Beauty Trends In America That Seem Weird To Other Cultures

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In a number of ways it seems as though we're broadening our horizons every day, but Americans tend to have preferred standards when it comes to beauty. As with so many other cultural norms, some people in other countries don't understand them and actually think they're just plain weird.

# data[].attributes.headline
Eastern Beauty - Asia's Feminine Beauty Ideals

# data[].attributes.subject
Eastern Beauty - Asia's Feminine Beauty Ideals

# data[].attributes.body
The ideal beauty standard in China, Korea and Japan are discussed in this article. The cute and soft look is embraced by the majority of the population with women pouring money into skin care and plastic surgery. Beauty is still very much seen from a patriarchal view in which women rely on men. This article delves into the traditional view of beauty to the women now breaking the standard

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
HONG KONG, China - With over 270 million monthly users, Chinese technology company Meitu is in the business of vanity. The company has several apps, but their most famous one is MeituPic - China's number one photo retouching app. It gives users the ability to alter their appearance with surprising flexibility and specificity.

Yet what is most notable about Meitu Pic is its uniquely Asian features and filters. There are functions to smooth skin, slim the face, add makeup, attach cute stickers, and enlarge one's eyes. Similar to MeituPic, Japan's Line Camera and South Korea's Snow also offer facial enhancement features.

While these selfie apps may differ in terms of functionality, they all help users to beautify themselves in ways that are telling about the markets they serve. They provide an interesting lens on how women in three East Asian countries view beauty ideals - and why certain beauty products succeed in an increasingly influential region.
A sweeter aesthetic than in the West
Traditionally, East Asian women have been held to a standard of feminine beauty that suggests they should be sweet and gentle. In some ways, not much has changed. Flattering words like "aegyo" in South Korea, and "kawaii" in Japan still convey the notion that attractive women are those who style and groom themselves in a way that is cute and soft.

One example of this in China is Fan Bing Bing, who is considered by many to be a feminine ideal. She possesses porcelain pale skin and a slender, heart-shaped face. Her charcoal black hair is both long and lush, and her large Bambi eyes are complemented by a wide set of gently-arched eyebrows.

This aesthetic contrasts greatly with Western standards, where a supermodel like Gisele Bündchen is prized for her athletic figure, bronzed complexion and extroverted, sexual aura. A quick browse through Instagram reveals a clear disparity between East Asian and Western feminine ideals.

"Part of this difference [in beauty standards] comes from the fact that the East equates beauty to balance. The aim is to balance yin and yang in order to achieve inner health and outer beauty," says Wei Young Brian, founder of traditional Chinese medicine beauty brand, Wei Beauty. Balance in this sense creates an ideal of moderation and wellbeing as pillars of attractiveness.

While the importance of health as part of a beauty regime has been touted in the West in recent years, this concept has long been understood and appreciated in East Asia.

"Chinese herbalists have concocted special tinctures, tonics and elixirs for over 5,000 years to specifically address individual skin concerns. This knowledge has passed down from generation to generation and is what we use today to formulate many of our beauty concoctions," Brian explains.
The influence of Hallyu and 'K-Beauty'
Similarly, South Korea's beauty industry also focuses on a holistic, in-depth approach where skin is king. Dietary supplements have become incredibly popular, including pills to brighten the complexion, collagen drinks to firm the skin and hyaluronic acid capsules for a healthy-looking glow. Koreans also prefer a balanced, natural look.

"Korean women tend not to put so much colour cosmetics on their face, as the tendency is not to look too glamorous. Instead, they are more keen to achieve a pure and minimal look," says Hye Ran Ji, team leader of Amorepacific's brand management team.

Ji elaborates: "For Korean skincare, you need skill, patience, time and energy to put on makeup - to give the appearance that your skin is naturally perfect. Most Korean women use at least four or five products just for basic skincare ... Many of them also use at least seven or eight products for their evening skincare routine."

Most Korean women use at least four or five products just for basic skincare.

The international expansion of 'K-Beauty', South Korea's beauty industry, has gone hand in hand with Hallyu, the global rise in popularity of South Korean culture since the late 1990s. This includes fashion, film, food, K-pop music and beauty.

"One example of the kind of woman who embodies this feminine ideal is Suzie Bae, who is a member of K-Pop idol girl group Miss A. She has a natural look, with bright, flawless skin and long hair. Compared to other stars, she's not considered to be a trendsetter when it comes to fashion [but] this fits her image and many Koreans have dubbed her the 'nation's first love,'" explains Ji.

Indeed, Bae's look couldn't be more different than that of her compatriot Chaelin Lee, a pop star better known by her initials whose rising status as a global style icon has been aided by her tough girl demeanor and a sultry, experimental hair and make-up combination.

Either way, the influence of K-Beauty is not to be underestimated. According to market research firm Euromonitor, the country's beauty exports were valued at US$207 million - a staggering increase of 59% from the year before. No wonder brands like Sulwhasoo, 3 Concept Eyes, Tonymoly and Amorepacific are fast becoming household names abroad.

Cosmetic surgery also draws in large numbers of international clients thanks to the country's reputation as a leader in surgery techniques and trends, with one of the highest rates of surgery per capita in the world.
Rethinking age and gender stereotypes
Whilst women in East Asia place a great deal of emphasis on preserving a youthful appearance, there are both timeless and evolving perspectives on beauty standards for older women. It can be challenging to strike a balance between guarding values of filial piety and overcoming elements of a patriarchal society.

"[The actress] Haruka Igawa is one example of a top-selling cover celebrity in Japan. She has a very clean, natural look as a mother, and is considered a woman many would like to be," says celebrity hair and makeup artist Aburaya Yoshiaki. "Two others are Yo Yoshida and Yuki Amami, who are considered beautiful, single working women who don't need to depend on [anyone else]."

Older women representing mainstream beauty ideals in China include Gong Li, the first Chinese ambassador for L'Oreal Paris 20 years ago, and Qin Yi, a 94-year old actress active before the Cultural Revolution who made a comeback in the 1980s.

Natural, matriarchal beauty templates may still be the norm for women of a certain age but there is also a growing acceptance and popularity of young women experimenting with gender definitions. Chinese singer and actress is a modern day example of someone who straddles this line of androgyny. Earlier this year, she posed on the cover of T Magazine China for their menswear fashion issue.

Another figure is Amber Liu, a rapper and singer who is a member of Korean group F(x). Whilst Liu initially faced an initial reluctance by the general public to accept her platinum cropped hair, snapback hats and baggy shorts, audiences are warming to her boyish beauty.

Similarly, many Asian men are experimenting with their feminine side. Korean rapper has flirted many times with women's products, including his regular use of make-up and wearing clothes from 's womenswear collections. Japanese beauty brand Shiseido highlighted the blurring lines between gender late last year in a viral advertisement called "High School Girl?".

Haruka Igawa has a very clean, natural look as a mother, and is considered a woman many would like to be.

The video depicts a group of girls in a classroom setting to a soothing ballad of a girl, before the illusion is destroyed. As the film moves backwards, the viewer quickly realises that the entire cast of schoolgirls are young men who have been disguised with the help of make-up, hair and beauty products. The film illustrates the blurring of male and female beauty in parts of East Asia, and how easy it can be to move along the gender spectrum.

According to Ritchie Chan, founder of the multi-brand boutique Triple Major which has outlets in Beijing and Shanghai, this movement toward genderless beauty is having an impact at fashion retail too. "Most of our younger female clients are quite comfortable with unisex clothing [and many now] end up purchasing men's styles too," he says.
Women's empowerment and collective individuality
An important factor in the East Asian beauty industry is the influence of family and society on life choices and consumer behaviour. One striking example was highlighted earlier this year by Japanese brand SK-II when the company conducted the Global Dreams Index. The survey revealed that 81% of women in Japan and 67% of women in Korea admitted that they had stopped pursuing their dreams due to factors such as societal pressure - the highest in comparison to the rest of the world.

These alarming findings propelled the brand to launch their Change Destiny initiative. The marketing campaign encourages women to dream again, and to break free of the outside forces that suppress them. They include stories of courage and strength from inspirational figures like Sayaka Osakabe, a women's right activist and professional tennis player Chan Yung-jan.

One video in particular by SK-II, entitled "Marriage Market Takeover", looks at the crippling pressure surrounding women from China to marry before they turn 25. The film explains the kind of social pressures these women face, before helping them to re-frame ideas of self-worth, independence and happiness around notions of beauty by engaging with the family members who pressurized them in the first place.

This narrative of female empowerment is quite different from a brand like Dove and its campaign for real beauty, which resonated well in North America by focusing on a more diverse notion of beauty but on a less nuanced understanding of individuality.
Related Articles: What's Driving the Goldrush for Korean Beauty Brands? Sixty-Six Shades of Skin: Tapping the Multicultural Beauty Market The 'Asian-ification' of Beauty

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
HONG KONG, China - With over 270 million monthly users, Chinese technology company Meitu is in the business of vanity. The company has several apps, but their most famous one is MeituPic - China's number one photo retouching app. It gives users the ability to alter their appearance with surprising flexibility and specificity.

# data[].attributes.body
This picture depicts the Samoan cultural tradition of 'Tatau'. A tradition untouched by Western culture, the receiving of a 'tatau' is a rite of passage into womanhood/manhood. Women receive a 'malu' which extends down from the thighs to the knees and men receive a 'pe'a' which often starts at the middle back and extends to the knees.

# data[].attributes.body
This video by Vice Media focuses on the illegal tattoo market in South Korea. A woman is shown revealing to her parents the fact that she got a large tattoo on her back and their reactions, although surprisingly supportive, show how different body art is viewed in different parts of the world.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
South Korean Woman Reveals Illegal Tattoos to Parents

# data[].attributes.body
This video analyzes the the extreme beauty standards in Korea known as K-beauty, and the detrimental effects in can have. It discusses the norms of plastic surgery in youth, such as the infamous eyelid surgery, the amount of money spent on the industry and how it can all go wrong.

# data[].attributes.headline
Eastern Beauty - Indian Culture - Skin Lightening

# data[].attributes.subject
Eastern Beauty - Indian Culture - Skin Lightening

# data[].attributes.body
This article discusses the issue of skin lightening methods in India's beauty culture. These methods involve pills, creams, injections and other medical procedures that claim to result in lighter skin. In India, fairer, more "Western" skin is seen as beautiful and skin colour can even determine job and marriage prospects.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
"It starts when children are young. The moment a child is born, relatives start comparing siblings' skin colour. It starts in your own family. But people don't want to talk about it openly."

Kavitha Emmanuel is the founder of Women of Worth, an Indian NGO that is standing up to an ingrained bias toward lighter skin. The Dark is Beautiful campaign, launched in 2009, is not "anti-white," she explains, but about inclusivity - beauty beyond colour. It carries celebrity endorsement, most notably the Bollywood actor Nandita Das. A blog provides a forum for people to share their personal stories of skin colour bias. And the campaign runs media literacy workshops and advocacy programmes in schools to convey messages of self-esteem and self-worth to young children. This is to counteract what Emmanuel says she has seen even in school textbooks, where a picture of a fair-skinned girl is labelled "beautiful" and a darker one "ugly".

"Some children are really shocked that this is something that has affected them so intensely. Some are in tears," Emmanuel says.

The perfect life from perfect skin, a life that's only bestowed upon those of the right shade - that's the message, the attitude, the mindset that's being passed down. It's spawned a multibillion-dollar industry encompassing not just cosmetic creams but invasive procedures such as skin bleaching, chemical peels, laser treatments, steroid cocktails, "whitening" pills and intravenous injections - all with varying effectiveness and health risks. It's more than a bias, it's a cultural obsession, and one that's becoming dangerous.

@connectdas Nandita Das: "..Everywhere there are blatant and subtle reinforcements that only fair is lovely." #India pic.twitter.com/YPHo9LxZLM
- Dark is Beautiful (@disbcampaign) July 24, 2013

Multinational cosmetics brands have found a lucrative market: global spending on skin lightening is projected to triple to US$31.2 billion by 2024, according to a report released in June 2017 by the research firm Global Industry Analysts.

The driving force, they say, is "the still rampant darker skin stigma and rigid cultural perception that correlates lighter skin tone with beauty and personal success".

"This is not bias. This is racism," says Sunil Bhatia, a professor of human development at Connecticut College. Bhatia has recently written in US News & World Report about "deep-rooted internalized racism and social hierarchies based on skin color".

In India, these were codified in the caste system, the ancient Hindu classification in which birth determined occupation and social stratum. At the top, Brahmins were priests and intellectuals. At the bottom, outcastes were confined to the least-desired jobs, such as latrine cleaners. Bhatia says caste may have been to do with more than occupation: the darker you looked, the lower your place in the social hierarchy.

This preference for fair skin was perpetuated and strongly reinforced by colonialism, not just in India but in dozens of countries where a European power established its dominance. It's the idea that the ruler is fair-skinned, says Emmanuel. "All around the world, it was a fact that the rich could stay indoors versus the poor who worked outside and were dark-skinned."

The final wave of influence is modern-day globalisation. "There is an interesting whiteness traveling from the US to malls [in other countries] featuring white models," Bhatia tells me. "You can trace a line from colonialism, post-colonialism and globalisation." Western beauty ideals, including fair skin, predominate worldwide. And with these ideals come products to service them.

In Nigeria, 77 per cent of the country's women use skin-lightening agents, compared with 59 per cent in Togo and 27 per cent in Senegal. But the largest and fastest-growing markets are in the Asia-Pacific region.

@ascionline @mygreentrends Desperately need salons to STOP Perfect White ads #Celebrate1.2BillionShadesOfBeautiful pic.twitter.com/8pB54Vqf2h
- Dark is Beautiful (@disbcampaign) October 21, 2015

In India, a typical supermarket will have a wall of personal care products featuring "whitening" moisturiser or "lightening" body creams from recognisable brands.

Pooja Kannan, a 27-year-old from Mumbai, spent years buying cosmetics that promised to lighten her complexion. For a while she put her faith in a cream, face wash and soap for treating "skin fairness problems". She used the products sparingly, since buying new ones still cost her Rs 200 - 300 every two months - equivalent to a week's worth of travel to her college campus. Over four years of use, she tells me, her skin did lighten up a little, though she wonders whether that was due to the cream or her taking more care when going out in the sun.

Kannan's natural skin tone looks a healthy light brown to me, but when she was growing up, her elder aunts would shake their heads in disappointment over her complexion. A tan would lead some relatives and classmates to admonish her. "You've turned black," they said. And in India, where skin tone often defines a person's success in society and their ability to find work or a spouse, that sort of thing matters. Kannan says she brushed off her relatives' criticism as being from a different generation, but her classmates' comments made her feel insecure.

"It didn't affect me right then but when I was getting dressed up to go out, I would remember what they said and put on more make-up," she says. "Especially when I was in 11th and 12th grades, there were two or three girls who would say these things a lot. They were trying to be helpful but to me it sounded condescending. And it was hypocritical too because it wasn't like they were fair or beautiful or perfect themselves."

Society reminded Kannan of it too. She is a professional dancer, and says, "The prettier, skinnier and fairer girls are positioned at the front of the stage. That gets to you."

This preference for fair skin is reinforced in movies, television programmes and especially advertising. In 2016, actor Emma Watson (of Harry Potter fame) had to issue a statement saying she would no longer endorse products which "do not always reflect the diverse beauty of all women" after criticisms of her earlier appearance in ads in Asia for Lancôme's Blanc Expert line, used for skin lightening. ( In a statement, Lancôme emphasised the product's "evening" rather than lightening properties, saying that it "helps brighten, evens skin tone, and provides a healthy-looking complexion. This kind of product, proposed by every brand, is an essential part of Asian women's beauty routines.")

The Advertising Standards Council of India has attempted to address skin-based discrimination in 2014 by banning ads depicting people with darker skin as inferior, but the products are still marketed. Ads for skin-lightening creams still appear in newspapers, on television and on billboards, featuring Bollywood celebrities such as Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone. In multiple Facebook posts in April 2017, actor Abhay Deol called out several of his colleagues for endorsing fairness creams, following it up with an opinion piece in the Hindustan Times in which he wrote that "advertising preaches that we would get a better job, a happier marriage, and more beautiful children if we were fair. We are conditioned to believe that life would have been easier had we been born fairer."

Skin lightening is not the sole preserve of the modern cosmetics industry.

India's traditional Ayurveda medical system teaches that pregnant women can improve their fetus's complexion by drinking saffron-laced milk and eating oranges, fennel seeds and coconut pieces. In early 2017, an Ayurvedic practitioner in Kolkata led a session for expectant couples, promising that even dark-skinned, short parents could have tall and fair children.

And a 2012 study by a women's health charity in India found that childless couples often insisted on and paid more for surrogates who were beautiful and fair, though the woman contributed no genetic material to the baby.

Arguably, nowhere is the fair skin preference as ingrained as in classified ads placed in newspapers seeking a marriage partner. Along with requirements for the prospective bride's or groom's caste, religion, profession and education, physical characteristics are listed too. Someone described as "dusky" may be skipped in favour of one who is of a "fair" complexion.

In April 2017, the Times of India media group placed its own notice exhorting parents to emphasise a daughter's profession and educational qualifications ahead of whether she was "fair".

"Potential brides spend a lot of money, it's really unlimited, in the months before the wedding," says Ema Trinidad, a Filipina beautician who runs a spa in Bengaluru. "I was so surprised when I came here that your chances of getting married depend on your skin colour. We don't have that in the Philippines."

(Photo: Pixabay)

The mindset is so normalised that people accept treatments as a part of wedding preparations - men as well as women. When Karthik Panchapakesan got married in 2001, he was intrigued by ads for a "complete makeover" and decided to try it out before his wedding reception, along with his brother-in-law.

"I had never gone to a salon before," says Panchapakesan, a 50-year-old media specialist working in community radio. They went to an unnamed salon in Hyderabad where, he told me, "The massage felt really good. Then they put this fruity and flowery white paste all over my forehead, cheeks, nose and chin. They promised it would even out my skin."

Panchapakesan says his eyes started burning after about five minutes and he got an irritation around his nose because the sweet smell turned to acrid fumes. He suspected it was based on ammonia.

"It was more chemical than horseradish," he says. "I didn't know what it is because they were pumping it out of toothpaste-like tubes. I say, 'I'm not liking this.' They say it will rejuvenate the skin and kept it on for 20 minutes."

When it was all done, the two men's faces looked as if they had been dusted with talcum powder. When they arrived at Panchapakesan's wedding reception, his wife asked him, "Why are you both looking so strange and funny? What have you done to yourselves?" He says, "It was not a transformation, it was a deformation."

To cool the burning sensation and moisturise his dry skin, he applied coconut oil as a healing balm for three days. He has sworn off beauty parlours ever since.

Bleaching is a common treatment that lightens not the skin itself but the fine hairs on the face. Most skin-lightening treatments target the skin's ability to produce pigment, or melanin, which gives your skin, hair and eyes their colour. Everyone has about the same number of cells to make melanin but how much you actually produce is down to your genes. Darker-skinned people produce more. When exposed to the sun, the body produces more melanin to absorb harmful UV rays and protect skin cells. And having more natural melanin also means that darker-skinned people tend to develop fewer wrinkles and are less at risk of skin cancer.

Skin-lightening creams often aim to interrupt the production of melanin or just improve the general health of the skin. They can contain a natural ingredient such as soy, liquorice or arbutin, sometimes combined with the medical lightening agent hydroquinone (though not all creams contain this - hydroquinone is a potentially carcinogenic ingredient and products containing it are banned or restricted in Ghana, South Africa, Côte d'Ivoire, Japan, Australia and the European Union, though they are still used illegally). Vitamin B3 is another common ingredient, but another previously found in lightening creams and soaps is mercury, the World Health Organization has warned. Mercury suppresses the production of melanin but it can also damage the kidneys and brain if it is absorbed by the skin and accumulates in the body.

Other lightening methods include a chemical peel, which removes the top layer of your skin. This leaves fresher skin exposed to harmful solar radiation and environmental pollutants. Laser treatments offer an even more aggressive approach by breaking up a skin's pigmentation, sometimes with skin-damaging results.

Dr Mukta Sachdev, a clinical and aesthetic dermatologist in Bengaluru, recalls two cases of Indian men who came to her after undergoing laser treatments while working in South Korea. They were each in their late 20s and getting ready for marriages. One man developed redness on his face and the other had little white dots - "confetti-like" depigmentation. Sachdev suspects the technicians in South Korea weren't used to working with darker skin. "You need to use less aggressive settings when doing laser. It's very hard when losing pigmentation," she says. She was able to treat the redness, but the white patches remained despite her efforts to stimulate the pigment to return.

Many prospective patients come to her seeking skin lightening, but before offering them any treatment she counsels them to think less about light and dark and more about evenly toned, healthy skin. "I'm trying to get away from this fairness obsession," she explains. "Being hung up on dark skin can lead to low self-esteem and lower on the quality of life index."

"There's a pressure on Indian men and women, among themselves," says Dr Sujata Chandrappa, a Bengaluru-based dermatologist. "They have some role model in their head and they want to get there no matter what. That's the wrong concept." Chandrappa says clients often come in wanting the skin tone of a favourite Bollywood celebrity.

"If your obsession is just with colour, then I would outright tell them that I'm more worried that you're unnecessarily seeking something you don't need," she tells me. "If I encourage them too much, I get the sense that I'm promoting racism."

Shannah Mendiola spends Rs 3,200 (about $50) a month on skin-lightening supplements - a lot by local standards, but Mendiola has a well-paying job with a multinational company. Originally from the Philippines, but now working in Bengaluru, Mendiola says she has been taking the pills for the last five years, not just for lighter skin but for their antioxidant properties.

"I like going to the beach and I feel really dark after a holiday," she tells me by email. "I would always prefer to buy and use skincare products that contain skin-whitening ingredients - like my body lotion, face wash and moisturizer. In the Philippines, it's always a plus if you are fair."

Mendiola describes herself as morena - not too fair and not too dark - and says that her skin returns to its natural colour faster when she uses the pills. "Having an even skin tone that's healthy and glowing gives me more self-confidence when I meet people for work. Why not? Don't we all want to look good?"

The pills she takes are glutathione, an antioxidant naturally produced by the liver that can protect the skin from UV rays and free radicals, which contribute to skin damage and pigmentation.

A more direct form of treatment is glutathione injections. These are commonly used to counteract the side-effects of chemotherapy, such as nausea, hair loss or difficulty breathing, but their growing popularity for skin lightening has led to official concern.

In 2011, the Philippines Food and Drug Administration issued a public warning about an "alarming increase in the unapproved use of glutathione administered intravenously," reporting on adverse effects which included skin rashes, thyroid and kidney dysfunction, and even potentially fatal Stevens-Johnson syndrome, in which the skin peels from the body as if burned.

And in 2015 the US Food and Drug Administration warned of the potentially significant safety risk to consumers: "You're essentially injecting an unknown substance into your body - you don't know what it contains or how it was made."

Nevertheless, there is growing consumer demand. Mendiola has taken two treatments of injectable glutathione but mostly relies on pills.

Dr Mukta Sachdev refuses to administer the injections despite repeated requests from her patients - "I practise on evidence-based dermatology and there's not enough literature supporting the use of injectable glutathione." Worryingly, there are YouTube videos showing how to self-inject glutathione.

Dr Sujata Chandrappa does administer glutathione injections. She says she has seen no side-effects so far, but is nonetheless wary, always starting with the lowest possible dose. I ask if it really works. She tells me of a woman who dreaded injections but whose yearning for lighter skin overrode her fear. Three months after the injections, her entire body was about two shades lighter and any dark spots had lessened. It lasted for a year. Chandrappa says the woman is considering repeating the procedure.

Women on the beach at Calangute, Goa. (Photo: Pixabay)

"From a medical perspective, it is not possible to lighten skin permanently, but you can even it out," Sachdev tells me. In fact, many of Sachdev's and Chandrappa's patients are actually people seeking treatment for problems with other skin-lightening procedures - primarily the use of topical steroid creams.

India's pharmaceutical regulator has approved at least 18 different corticosteroids for topical skin use, ranging from mild to super-potent. These usually cost less than $2 or Rs 130 a tube and most pharmacies across the country will dispense them, even without a prescription.

People apply them indiscriminately to treat pimples or for fairer skin, but steroid creams take off the protective outer layer of the skin so it is more exposed to UV rays and environmental pollutants such as smog and cigarette smoke. But more worrying is that they can be addictive, says Dr Shyamanta Barua, a dermatologist and honorary secretary general of the Indian Association of Dermatologists, Venereologists and Leprologists.

"The moment the patient stops using the cream, the skin reacts, gets irritated, develops rashes," he says. "So the patient starts the cream again and it's a vicious cycle. They become psychologically addicted." He thinks users should be counseled as if they were addicted to recreational drugs or alcohol.

The dermatologists' association is lobbying for topical steroid skin medications to be added to the Schedule H list, which would restrict their availability in pharmacies by requiring a doctor's prescription. They met with the Drug Controller General of India in March 2017, though Dr Shyam B Verma, the dermatologist who heads these efforts, seems pessimistic as to whether any action would be forthcoming. "These products are just a minuscule part of the overall drug industry so it's not a priority," he tells me.

"[Pharmacies] dispense them like boxes of cookies. The drug companies know this is a drug and it's not supposed to be used to lighten constitutive skin. But they label them with suggestive names like Skin Bright, Skin Light, Skin Shine, Look Bright."

Furthermore, only around 35 per cent of pharmacies have a legitimate pharmacist on staff, so there is often no one to counsel the buyer on appropriate dosage and use of the cream.

Even worse, there are signs that improper steroid prescriptions - often in cocktails containing a mix of steroids, antibiotics and antifungals - may be fueling a surge in bugs resistant to normal treatments. An editorial in the dermatologists' association's online journal last year says, "Today, we are facing an onslaught of chronic and recurrent dermatophytosis [fungal infections] in volumes never encountered previously. Over the last three to four years, the frequency of such cases has increased alarmingly."

Dr Rajetha Damisetty, a cosmetic dermatologist based in the southern city of Hyderabad, tells me of one combination containing clobetasol - the most potent steroid known to man, which is used to treat inflammatory skin conditions like eczema - mixed with two antibiotics and two antifungals. "Only India has this crazy combination," Damisetty says, and the result is a "nightmare".

Normally, she says, "around 70-90 per cent of those affected by fungal infections would have used topical steroids for treatment and they would respond within two weeks. Now we have to give four times the dosage for eight to 12 weeks. It's an epidemic across the entire country."

The dermatologists' association is trying to educate physicians, especially general practitioners who indiscriminately prescribe steroid creams, about proper prescriptions. They are also engaging with pharmaceutical companies, which has borne some fruit - in April 2017, one company distributed flyers to 50,000 pharmacies warning: "Steroids are potentially harmful. Do not use without a prescription."

But they're fighting more than just bad medical practice or even consumer habits. They're fighting millennia-old preferences for lighter skin. Erasing those will require a change of mindset. This is perhaps easier to do in the young - after all, social signals about the value of fair skin begin as soon as they are born.

Kavitha Emmanuel believes that people are more aware of the issue than ever before and hopes that the next generation will see things differently - not just in India but across the world. In 2016, three students at the University of Texas, Austin, started an Instagram campaign called Unfair & Lovely - a play on India's most popular fairness cream, Fair & Lovely. The #unfairandlovely hashtag invited darker-skinned people to share their photos. And in 2013, a young woman in Pakistan, Fatima Lodhi, launched the country's first anti-colourism movement, called Dark is Divine. Lodhi has written about the prejudice she faced as a child: "I never got a chance to become a fairy in my school plays because fairies are supposed to be fair-skinned!" Now, she leads sessions at schools to make students more aware about skin colour discrimination.

Attitudes are already starting to change, some say, especially among girls, who are gaining confidence with education, employment and financial independence outside the home. Emmanuel tells me of one Dark is Beautiful session at an all-girls middle school in the southern Indian city of Chennai last January. A dark-skinned teen - "stunningly beautiful but with deep self-esteem issues" - came up front. She was weeping because just that morning her brother had taunted her about her skin tone. But Emmanuel was more surprised when another, lighter-skinned, girl stood up. She said she'd believed dark was ugly until that moment, but apologised to her classmates with a promise to treat them better. "They all started clapping," Emmanuel says. "That's a big move for a teenager. She really had the bigness of heart to say something like that."

But activists fear the market for skin-lightening treatments will endure as long as they are available. Beautician Ema Trinidad recalls one woman who came to her spa. Her fiancé had lighter skin and her future in-laws wanted her to be lighter before their wedding. "I felt sorry for her. She wasn't really dark, she just had very dry skin, so I gave her a moisturising treatment," Trinidad says. She advises clients about which products and treatments are effective and safe, but adds, "I cannot judge that it's bad that you want to be white. My job... is to give you what you want."
This article was first published on Mosaic.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Skin lightening: India's obsession that is becoming a medical problem

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
"It starts when children are young. The moment a child is born, relatives start comparing siblings' skin colour. It starts in your own family. But people don't want to talk about it openly." Kavitha Emmanuel is the founder of Women of Worth, an Indian NGO that is standing up to an ingrained bias toward lighter skin.

# data[].attributes.headline
Untouched Beauty - How the Samoan 'Tatau' Survived Colonialism

# data[].attributes.subject
Untouched Beauty - How the Samoan 'Tatau' Survived Colonialism

# data[].attributes.body
This article discusses how, despite the spread of Christian missionaries across the South Pacific in the 18th and 19th centuries, the Samoan body art practice of 'tatau' lasted through the pressures of the church. This is truly a beautiful example of pure culture that was not tainted by the damaginsimpact of colonialism.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In the 1800s, a chief in the South Pacific archipelago of Samoa sought medical aid from a Christian missionary stationed there. The missionary, a Scotsman by the name of George Archibald Lundie, urged the chief to renounce his traditional religious beliefs. Eventually, the chief agreed, but he put off professing a change in his faith until after his son received a pe'a tattoo, inked from mid-torso to knees in a ritual that typically takes many days.

The tale of Lundie and the chief hints at how Samoans kept their tattoo tradition, called tatau, alive despite outside pressures. As missionaries spread across the South Pacific during the 18th and 19th centuries, they attempted to wipe out local tattooing traditions-and broadly succeeded. But they failed in Samoa, where men traditionally received markings called pe'a, and women got thigh tattoos called malu.

Today tatau has made forays into other cultures while retaining its traditional Samoan flair, and its influence stretches well beyond its native islands. Samoans have mainly migrated to the United States, New Zealand, and Australia, and people of Samoan ancestry now use tattoos to connect with their roots. Tatau masters have visited a variety of nations to create their distinctive art for clients, both Samoan and non-Samoan, including other Pacific islands where they've helped revive lost tattoo practices.

"It's amazing [tatau's] persisted," says anthropologist Sean Mallon, the senior curator of Pacific cultures at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa. "I can't believe it, in a way."

Many possible reasons can explain the practice's resilience. As with tattoos the world over, tatau's power rests in part in how various groups read and recognize these markings. Traditionally, Samoan tattoos marked adulthood, which came with special privileges. Christian missionaries, when they came to the archipelago, never caught on to the rite's religious dimension, so they didn't perceive it as a direct threat to their churches. As a result, tatau persists today, and its meaning has only broadened with Samoan migration.

The tatau tradition goes back 3,000 years. But when missionaries first encountered it, two centuries ago, they considered it a "savage and heathen practice," says Mallon. As a result of tattoo taboos, some Samoans risked fines or banishment for getting inked.

For instance, the London Missionary Society, which arrived on Savai'i Island in the western part of Samoa in 1830, banned tatau in some areas because it disapproved of the partying that often accompanied the process. But island geography helped thwart their efforts, notes Sébastien Galliot, an anthropologist at the French National Centre for Scientific Research, Centre for Research and Documentation on Oceania in Marseille, France.

Samoa is an archipelago, comprising several islands and islets. At the time, it had a "decentralized system of chieftainship," says Galliot. The society converted a few villages, but others were relatively unaffected. That fact gave tatau plenty of space for continued practice.

When chiefs in eastern parts of Samoa banned tatau in the 1860s, young men traveled to the western end of the archipelago to get tattooed, even though it meant they couldn't go home. They were allowed back by the 1890s-provided they paid a fine.

Meanwhile, Catholic missionaries, who arrived in 1845, ended up accepting the tatau tradition. They sent a letter to church leaders in Rome, arguing that the practice wasn't religious, and received dispensation to allow tattooing among converts.

But the Catholics may have been mistaken, explains Galliot, who collaborated with Mallon on a history of tatau. In reviewing historic documents, Galliot discovered that a local shrine was linked to the legendary sisters, Taema and Tilafaiga, who are credited with bringing tatau to Samoa. That connection, says Galliot, was "a point that none of the missionaries had actually figured out."

As a result of these varied factors, Samoans held on to tatau even as they broadly adopted Christianity. In fact, some Christian leaders now embrace tattooing. In modern Samoa, a pastor or preacher often kicks off the tattooing process by sanctifying the place where it will happen. Mallon notes that his uncle, who was a priest in Samoa, had a pe'a.

Other factors are also at play in tatau's survival. Undergoing the ritual gave Samoans things they weren't willing to give up for the missionaries' God: status, evidence of strength and courage, and improved desirability to potential partners.

The pe'a is an important rite of passage in Samoan communities that grants a man adult status and the right to perform certain duties for the village chief. "You're not respected without your tatau," explains Si'i Liufau, a Samoan tattoo artist in Garden Grove, California. "You have to have a tatau to be a full man." Today many people save up until midlife to afford the expensive ritual.

For women, the malu also brings privileges. For example, tattooed women can serve ceremonial drinks or collect gifts at a funeral. Some women now get the malu to mark life events such as university graduation or a job promotion.

Anthropologists have found that across diverse cultures, tattooing is a way to advertise or emphasize one's identity. Tatau follows the pattern. "Tattooing is still something important in a man's life or in a woman's life in terms of marking their belonging to the community," Galliot says.

To many people of Samoan ancestry living around the world, tatau provides a sense of connection to their ancestral islands. For instance, it helps people identify as Samoan as opposed to other groups such as Maori or Tongan.

Liufau, who grew up in Southern California, discovered Samoan tattooing in his 20s. Tatau brought him back to Samoan traditions and language as he trained to perform the ritual himself.

"This is something we've had since the beginning of being Samoans," says Liufau. "Churches might change, but Samoan culture does not."

This work first appeared on SAPIENS under a CC BY-ND 4.0 license. Read the original here.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How the Samoan Tattoo Survived Colonialism

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In the 1800s, a chief in the South Pacific archipelago of Samoa sought medical aid from a Christian missionary stationed there. The missionary, a Scotsman by the name of George Archibald Lundie, urged the chief to renounce his traditional religious beliefs.

# data[].attributes.headline
Untouched Beauty - Extreme Beauty Standards Worldwide

# data[].attributes.subject
Untouched Beauty - Extreme Beauty Standards Worldwide

# data[].attributes.body
This video takes a brief look at beauty standards in remote areas of the world that are deemed unusual to Western societies. But are seen as beautiful and even a right or passage into womanhood in their own cultures.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
10 Unusual Women Beauty Standards Around The World

# data[].attributes.headline
Untouched Beauty - Traditional Scarification in Ethiopia's Surma Tribe 

# data[].attributes.subject
Untouched Beauty - Traditional Scarification in Ethiopia's Surma Tribe 

# data[].attributes.body
This picture shows a young 12-year old girl after she has undergone her scarification ceremony. The process is a sign of beauty in which the girl choses to have it done as it signifies emotional maturity. Though the children are told not to complete the ceremony, men in the Surma tribe view bare skin as ugly.

# data[].attributes.body
Mihaela Noroc, a Romanian photographer, under took a massive project to travel to different countries and photograph women who are deemed beautiful in their respective countries. From the way they dress to the ideal body type and makeup, each ideal varies from country to country.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Discover the world through portraits of women