Is the lightening effect of hydroquinone permanent?

Hi there!

I use hydroquinone for my hyperpigmented skin, the brand name in my country is called Ultraquin. It is 4% hydroquinone in a gel form. It works for me... as long as I use it diligently. I have to warn you that once my skin lightened, if I go out in the sun without sunscreen, the spots that I was lightening slowly became darker once again. If you go out in the sun a lot, sunscreen really should be used to maintain your progress.

I use SPF 50 for the beach but for everyday wear I use SPF 15.

I live in Canada and it is available over the counter in most provinces in this country. I believe in the US anything over 2% requires a prescription. If you want to save $$$ I would try to buy it over the counter. It is usually kept behind the counter in pharmacies in Canada, so you may have to ask the pharmacist to order some in for you.

I hope I may have been of some help :)

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P.S. If you are pregnant or intend to become pregnant withing the next 3 mos. I suggest you do not use this... there are not any adequate studies that have been done to show if it may harm a fetus. I have my package insert in front of me and it warns not to use it if you intend to become pregant.