The BBC reports that bleach, well-known household danger chemical, could be beneficial to the skin. When (very) diluted, it can help reduce imflammation, and according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, it can also slow signs of aging.
But everyone quoted emphasizes that you should NOT just put bleach directly onto skin. Literally, the first quote in this piece, which is from Dr. Graham Johnston at the British Association of Dermatologists, goes like this:
I cannot emphasize enough that it is very important that individuals with inflammatory conditions do not apply bleach directly to their skin.
Baths of 0.005 percent bleach have been used to treat eczema. The Stanford team behind the study was using bleach to try to treat dermatitis — but so far, only on mice, not people. They found that it helped fight inflammation as well as helping the skin look younger and thicker, with increased skin cell production.
The changes, however, were visible only through a microscope — not visible to the naked eye. The BBC reports: “The mice did not appear younger.”
