The Beautywell Project

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The Beautywell Project

The Beautywell Project aims to end skin-lightening practices and chemical exposures.

Individuals live in a healthy lifestyle and embrace their identity and culture.

01/22/2026

🍂 How does our environment affect our mental health?

🌱 Asma Yusuf, Ziham Yasin, and Nadia Barre explored this question through their Young Women’s Wellness and Leadership Initiative (YWWLI) final project. These 3 YWWLI alumni received mentorship on taking lead of their health and wellness, gained policy and advocacy skills, and learned how to create successful social media advocacy campaigns to address women’s health and well-being through the course of the 18-week program.

💚 In culmination of the knowledge and skill they gained, Asma, Ziham, and Nadia created a series of mental health advocacy videos addressing prevalent mental health issues affecting their generation and community.

💭 To the viewers, how have you found your environment to impact your own mental health? What are some practices you have adopted to create a positive relationship between your environment and your mental health?

01/22/2026

💆🏾‍♀️ How are the mind and body connected?

🌱 Asma Yusuf, Ziham Yasin, and Nadia Barre explored this question through their Young Women’s Wellness and Leadership Initiative (YWWLI) final project. These 3 YWWLI alumni received mentorship on taking lead of their health and wellness, gained policy and advocacy skills, and learned how to create successful social media advocacy campaigns to address women’s health and well-being through the course of the 18-week program.

💚 In culmination of the knowledge and skill they gained, Asma, Ziham, and Nadia created a series of mental health advocacy videos addressing prevalent mental health issues affecting their generation and community.

💭 To the viewers, what are your thoughts on the connection between the mind and body and how it impact mental health? What are your practices for nurturing your own mental health?

01/20/2026

☣️ Our lab testing found all of these products to contain highly toxic levels of mercury, cadmium, arsenic, and/or lead. These products are being sold in US and global markets

🔬 Beautywell has lab-tested over 100 skin-lightening products for toxic chemicals. Visit the Beautywell Product Database at thebeautywell.org/data to view the complete list of products and detailed lab results.

📢 Share this post with your loved ones and community members. The safest way to avoid toxic chemical exposure is to stop using all skin-lightening products.

01/15/2026

Hydroquinone reduces melanin, but at what cost?

Hydroquinone is a potent skin-lightening agent that is found in skin-lightening products at highly dangerous levels. It works by reducing melanin in the skin, your body’s natural shield from UV radiation and sun damage. Exposure to hydroquinone can cause:

• Skin irritation
• Skin inflammation
• Extreme sensitivity to sunlight
• Ochronisis (blue-black and grey-blue skin discoloration)
• Cancer

What You Should Do:

1. Seek Medical Advice: If you or a loved one has used these products or is experiencing any of these symptoms, please consult a doctor immediately for an examination and treatment.

2. Dispose Safely: Do not throw skin-lightening products in the regular trash. Because they contain mercury, lead, hydroquinone, arsenic, and steroids, they are considered hazardous waste. Please take them to a designated hazardous waste site for safe disposal.

Stop using skin-lightening products and embrace your melanin!

We want everyone to have access to this life-saving information. Swipe to the second slide and scan the QR codes to read our Hydroquinone Exposure Fact Sheet in English, Somali, French, and Swahili.

01/14/2026

Are steroids in cosmetics safe?

Steroids are sometimes prescribed by a dermatologist in small doses as FDA-tested, regulated ointments to treat specific skin conditions. With the guidance of a dermatologist. Our research has found that skin-lightening products can contain steroid levels up to 1000x higher than the FDA limit for safe steroid levels.

Many skin-lightening products don’t list all the ingredients, so reading the ingredient list isn’t a guarantee of avoiding toxic steroid exposure. The safest way to protect yourself is to stop using skin-lightening products and embrace your natural beauty.

What You Should Do:

1. Seek Medical Advice: If you or a loved one has used these products or is experiencing any steroid exposure symptoms, please consult a doctor immediately for an examination and treatment.

2. Dispose Safely: Do not throw skin-lightening products in the regular trash. Because they contain mercury, lead, hydroquinone, arsenic, and steroids, they are considered hazardous waste. Please take them to a designated hazardous waste site for safe disposal.

We want everyone to have access to this life-saving information. Swipe to the second slide and scan the QR codes to find resources in English, Spanish, Somali, French, and Swahili.

01/14/2026

Our advocacy in action! 📢

After advocating at the State Capitol for more regulation on harmful skin-lightening products, we are thrilled to see these roles open up. is now hiring two full-time Environmental Specialists to join their Safer and Sustainable Products Unit!
This is a powerful opportunity to protect our community from mercury and chemical exposures in cosmetics.

The Role:
• 75% Enforcement: Identifying and responding to mercury in skin-lightening and skincare products.
• 25% Education: Working with businesses and the public on chemical safety.

How to Apply:
📍 Visit careers.mn.gov
🔢 Search Job Code: 91076
⏳ Deadline: January 20, 2026

Help us spread the word! Share this post with someone who has an environmental protection background and a passion for public health.

01/13/2026

An invisible danger: lead in skin-lightening products.

Did you know that lead can be found in cosmetic products? No amount of lead exposure is safe, and lead poisoning can occur when too much lead gets into the body through the skin, breathing, eating, or drinking. Skin-lightening products are often untested and unregulated. They may contain lead, alongside other toxic chemicals.

Lead exposure is a serious public health concern that can cause:

- Organ damage, such as harm to the brain, liver, kidney, and bones
- Nerve and blood vessel damage
- Risk of high blood pressure
- Pregnancy complications
- Developmental delays and learning difficulties in children
- Symptoms such as tiredness, headaches, memory loss, behavioral problems, weight loss, nausea, vomiting, and stomach, joint, and muscle pain

What You Should Do:

1. Seek Medical Advice: If you or a loved one has used these products or is experiencing any of these symptoms, please consult a doctor immediately for an examination and treatment.

2. Dispose Safely: Do not throw skin-lightening products in the regular trash. Because they contain mercury, hydroquinone,, lead, arsenic, and steroids, they are considered hazardous waste. Please take them to a designated hazardous waste site for safe disposal.

Protect yourself from lead exposure! Stop using skin-lightening products and dispose of them safely. To learn more about lead exposure and how to ensure your environment is lead free, scan the QR code in the second slide to access our Lead Exposure Toolkit.

01/09/2026

Colorism isn’t just a social discrimination issue. It is a public health crisis with deep historical roots.

Beautywell founder & Executive Director, Amira Adawe, breaks down how colorism was systemically manufactured through slavery and colonialism. By establishing “whiteness” as a global standard of value, colorism creates systemic privileges and health disparities we fight against today.

🎞️ Source: Amira Adawe presenting “The Colorism-Public Health Crisis: Interrogating Toxic Skin Lightening Products as an Environmental Justice Issue” at the Justice in Public Health Series hosted by the UMN’s School of Public Health

Watch the full talk at bit.ly/Colorism-PublicHealthCrisis

01/07/2026

Did you know that some skin-lightening products contain steroids at 1,000x the recommended dose?

Colorism feeds a multi-billion dollar industry that often conceals dangerous ingredients like corticosteroids, specifically clobetasol. Prolonged exposure to these toxic chemicals can lead to:

• Serious skin damage, including thinning, rashes, and sores
• Hypertension and elevated blood sugar
• Reduced natural steroid production in your body
• Increased risks during pregnancy or breastfeeding

Embrace your unique beauty and protect your health. If you are using these products, please stop using them and consult a doctor.

The Beautywell Project is committed to breaking the cycle of colorism. We created this animated series to provide culturally and linguistically relevant health education, making the facts about chemical exposure accessible to everyone.

Watch in your language: This video is available in Spanish, Hmong, Somali, and more. Visit bit.ly/SteroidAnimation

01/05/2026

Protect your melanin— it’s protecting you!

Skin-lightening products often contain hydroquinone, a chemical agent that reduces melanin but at a high cost to your health. Prolonged exposure can lead to:

• Persistent skin irritation and inflammation
• Ochronosis (blue/black or grey/blue skin discoloration)
• Extreme sensitivity to sunlight
• Increased health risks, including potential links to cancer

Melanin isn’t a flaw; it is your body’s natural shield against UV radiation, helping to prevent sunburns and skin cancer.

The Beautywell Project is committed to breaking the cycle of colorism. We created this animated series to provide culturally and linguistically relevant health education, making the facts about chemical exposure accessible to everyone.

Watch in your language: This video is available in Spanish, Hmong, Somali, and more. Visit bit.ly/HydroquinoneAnimation

01/02/2026

What is the real cost of skin-lightening creams?

The global skin-lightening industry often targets communities of color with products containing harmful chemicals such as mercury, hydroquinone, high-potency steroids, lead, and arsenic. These toxins don’t just affect your skin. They can lead to serious health impacts, including organ damage and vision loss.

The Beautywell Project is committed to breaking the cycle of colorism and protecting community health. This animated series was created to bridge the gap in culturally and linguistically relevant health education, making knowledge about the health impacts of chemicals in these products more accessible.

This video is also available in Spanish, Hmong, Somali, and other languages. To watch in another language, visit bit.ly/MercuryAnimation.

Address

1821 University Avenue W Suite 464-28
Saint Paul, MN
55104

Website

http://www.thebeautywell.org/

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