Skin-lightening products (SLPs) and levels of depression, anxiety, and stress among Filipino emerging adults: a cross-sectional study

Background: The Philippines is one of Southeast Asia's top consumers of beauty products. There have been few studies on the psychological aspects of skin-lightening products (SLPs) consumption in the Philippines. Hence, we investigated the association between knowledge of, perception towards, and frequency of use of SLP and psychological distress (depression, anxiety, and stress) levels among Filipino emerging adults. Methods: Using convenience sampling, a cross-sectional online survey collected data from Filipino emerging adults (18 to 29 years old) residing in the Philippines. Associations between knowledge, perception, and use of SLPs and psychological distress levels were estimated using generalized linear models with Poisson log-link function, adjusted for confounding factors. Effect estimates were expressed as adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) with a 95% confidence interval (95% CI). Results: We recruited 3,127 participants (67% female; Mage =20.91, SD =2.97). High perceived benefit of SLP use is associated with increased depression levels (aPR: 1.21; 95% CI: 1.07–1.37). In addition, a high frequency of SLP use is related to decreased depression levels (20–24%) and increased anxiety levels (11–18%). Lastly, once-a-week use of SLP is linked with reduced stress levels among the participants by 35% (aPR: 0.65; 95% CI: 0.49–0.86). Conclusions: Perceptions and frequency of SLP use are suggested to be associated with psychological distress levels among Filipino emerging adults.