Sammy Sosa, 48, nearly broke the Internet when he resurfaced with even “lighter” skin than he had last summer! The former Chicago Cubs star was all smiles while in London on Nov. 8, but fans couldn’t get over his changed appearance. Many were worried about Sammy’s health and well-being, since he previously admitted to bleaching his skin in the past, so we spoke to a medical professional to get some insight. “I’m not Sammy’s doctor, so I can’t speculate as to why he would do something like this, but unless he does have a skin condition such as Vitiligo, this definitely isn’t normal,” Dr. Peter Kopelson, Beverly Hills dermatologist, explains to HollywoodLife.com EXCLUSIVELY. “Even if he did have Vitiligo which usually leaves patchiness of white, the proper treatment would be to use sun lamps and UV exposure to make the skin dark again.”
“To completely remove the pigment from his skin, Sammy would have had to use a medication called Benzoquinone,” Peter further explained. “It leaves the skin unprotected against skin cancer, so he would have to make sure that he uses a lot of sun screen and wear hats everyday and clothing that cover up his skin. What Benzoquinone can cause is severe skin irritation and severe eye irritation, the vapor can also affect the breathing. He is absolutely at a greater risk for cancer than a regular Caucasian person because he has completely taken the pigment out of his skin. Again, this is a very strong medication that is not commercially available. Not that many people have used it because it’s basically illegal in the United States without getting an approval from the CDC, and it’s rare that they allow it to be used. The only extreme case that I’ve ever seen of skin de-pigmentation to this magnitude was Michael Jackson.”
Fans were going in on Sammy after seeing his drastically different look. The former right fielder seemed to be in great spirits while flaunting his dabbing skills, months after his interview with ESPN aired, which showcased his “lighter skin.” Many of his followers began noticing his changed appearance back in 2009 and he previously gave an explanation. “It’s a cream that I have, that I use to soften [my skin], but has bleached me some,” Sammy told Univision’s Primer Impacto. “I’m not a racist, I live my life happily. What happened was that I had been using the cream for a long time and that, combined with the bright TV lights, made my face look whiter than it really is.”
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HollywoodLifers, do you think Sammy is still using the bleaching cream? Tell us, below.