Some of my friends from the mainland (of both sexes) confided that
they did not expect to see women in Hong Kong have fair skin
because of the sub-tropical climate of the city.
As a matter of fact, the local populace share with their
neighbors the same ethnic roots and climatic patterns - two major
factors affecting skin complexion.
Government figures tell us that the majority of Hong Kong's
nearly 7 million residents are Cantonese, Hakka and Teochew, the
same ethnic groups that inhabit the neighboring province of
Guangdong.
And compared with those living in higher latitudes, people in
the southern part of China where there is a longer and hotter
summer season generally have more pigments in their skin to shield
them from the harmful ultraviolet rays.
Since Hong Kong is situated on the southern edge of the
mainland, closer to the tropical region than most other parts of
the country, Hongkongers should theoretically look darker than
their mainland counterparts.
Yet that is not the case.
It must be noted that darker skin tone in southern Chinese does
not originate from their DNA. Instead, it is acquired, coming from
longer exposure to sunlight that triggers an increased release of
pigments into skin cells. That is to say, Hong Kong women's fair
skin is the result of a lack of sunning rather than an inherited
condition.
One may tend to think that perhaps Hong Kong women are
particularly fussy about the fairness of their skin.
It is true that many of them believe that as far as skin
coloration is concerned, white is beautiful. To that end, many
local women do their best to avoid prolonged exposure to the sun by
shunning outdoor activities.
Their beauty concept is constantly reinforced, or may have
actually been induced, by advertisers of skincare products whose
whitening function is one of their major selling points. And many
kinds of cosmetics on the shelves screen out ultraviolet rays and
neutralize its browning effect.
Yet, the fact is, mainland women outdo their Hong Kong
counterparts in their obsession with the color of skin. According
to a recent survey conducted by Nielsen, while 18 percent of
respondents in Hong Kong admitted to using whitening skincare
products once a day or once a week, more than 30 percent of those
on the mainland do the same thing, ranking them first in Asia.
So if it is not the genes or the climate, nor is it the stuff
they put on their skin, then what makes local ladies look whiter
than their northern neighbors?
The secret may lie in the urban landscape of Hong Kong.
Although Hong Kong covers a total area of 1,104 sq km, less than
25 percent of it has been developed. The 7 million residents are
crammed into a concrete jungle of high-rises and narrow
streets.
Taking a walk along the busy streets in this city and looking up
occasionally, one can only see small patches of the sky. Sunlight
is mostly blocked at street level. And it is not uncommon for
buildings to be linked by foot-bridges and tunnels.
Local women do not get the chance to expose themselves to the
sun unless they go for outings or outdoor sports on weekends or
during holidays. While many women in Western countries like to get
tanned, women in Hong Kong seem to be in no mood to venture into
the sun.
Whether white is beautiful is a matter of opinion, but getting
an appropriate amount of sunning is definitely good for the
health.
(China Daily September 7, 2007)
