Potentially dangerous vampire facials and vitamin IV treatments only grow in popularity despite safe

The blood is drawn, processed in a centrifuge to separate the plasma – which contains platelets and growth factors – before being injected into the face using micro-needles. Some places may combine the plasma with cosmetic fillers to boost its skin-rejuvenating effects.

The skin treatment was made popular by Hollywood celebrities such as reality television star Kim Kardashian West and Israeli supermodel Bar Rafaeli.

PRP facials are thought to increase collagen production; fans claim that the treatment minimises wrinkles, scars and leaves the skin looking tighter, plumper and more even-toned.

Dr Low Chai Ling, an aesthetic doctor and co-founder of SW1 Clinic in Singapore, says there is good reason vampire facials are banned in the city state. The procedure involves micro-injections or the use of a micro-needling device called a derma-roller on the surface of the skin, which means clients run the risk of contracting a blood-borne infection if the device is not sterilised correctly.

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But some people are putting their life at risk with another potentially harmful cosmetic procedure. In 2018, supermodel Kendall Jenner – who is also the half-sister of Kardashian – was hospitalised for a bad reaction to a vitamin intravenous (IV) drip. 

Pop stars Rihanna and Adele, and model Chrissy Teigen, are also said to have had a vitamin IV drip.

The procedure, which involves injecting a cocktail of vitamins, collagen, the antioxidant glutathione and/or other nutrients into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestive system, is said to have immunity-boosting, antiwrinkle, anti-ageing and skin-lightening benefits.

However, it may have side effects including blood clots, and vein irritation and inflammation. People also run the risk of getting an air embolism, where an air bubble enters the vein.

According to Low, some people may develop severe allergic reactions to the treatment including Stevens-Johnson syndrome, a rare disorder of the skin and mucous membranes. She says when large volumes of fluid are infused into the bloodstream, cardiac events such as heart failure may also occur, while some vitamins in large doses can damage the organs.

Equally dangerous are whitening IV drips and injections that claim to lighten the skin. The injectable skin whitening and skin bleaching products used in the injections may contain harmful ingredients or contaminants.

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“IV whitening and vitamin drips pose a potentially significant safety risk to consumers,” Low asserts. “You are essentially injecting an unknown substance into your body – you do not know what it contains or how it was made. And because delivery is intravenous, potential side effects, if any, can present in a serious form such as death.”

In fact, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as health authorities in many countries, including Singapore and Malaysia, have flagged injectable skin lightening and bleaching products as potentially unsafe. “These products are unapproved and not condoned by the US FDA,” says Low. “The FDA has not approved any injectable drugs for skin whitening or lightening.”

Studies on the effectiveness of such treatments have also come up short. In 2012, Ministry of Health Malaysia released an advisory stating that there was no significant clinical evidence to prove that vitamin C injections could improve skin elasticity or whiten the skin. There was also no solid proof for the safety of such injections for anti-ageing, anti-wrinkle and skin-whitening purposes.

As such, the ministry could not recommend the treatment. The country’s National Pharmaceutical Regulatory Agency also prohibits any kind of vitamin C injections to be used for those cosmetic reasons.

Similarly, in 2015, Singapore’s Ministry of Health put out an advisory to its country’s licensed health care institutions, stating that non-evidence-based treatments like IV infusions of vitamins B and C  should not be provided in licensed health care institutions.

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In case you are wondering if cosmetic fillers, such as those used to minimise wrinkles and saggy skin, pose similar dangers to IV drip treatments, the answer is no – provided, of course, the treatment is FDA-approved and performed by a licensed and experienced practitioner.

“Fillers are placed in the skin and therefore any effect they exert is localised,” says Low. “This means that, unlike IV drip treatments, they cannot exert an effect or side effect on the entire body. FDA-approved fillers are also stringently tested and have been studied in patients over many years to show their safety and efficacy.

“Whitening or vitamin IV drips are usually from unknown sources and have not been tested or regulated by the FDA, so no one really knows what ingredients have been used. Such treatments also have not been studied extensively, so we do not really know what effects they may have on the body in the long-term. There are many safer ways to achieve similar results and people should not be putting their health at risk for the sake of beauty.”

While cosmetic treatments can help improve our overall appearance, we should not underestimate the power of a healthy and balanced lifestyle when it comes to maintaining our skin.

Low says: “A large part of how our skin looks and feels has to do with our health and well-being. Stress, lack of sleep, a bad diet and other poor lifestyle habits can reflect on the health and appearance of the skin.”

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Untold dangers of ‘vampire facials’, vitamin injections

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