Stanford University School of Medicine recently conducted preliminary tests on mice in a study that suggests common household bleach could have anti-aging benefits.
According to a statement from the university to ABC News, the study tested the effects of daily, 30-minutes baths in diluted bleach solution on lab mice with radiation dermatitis, a condition caused by chemo or radio therapy.
Findings showed the mice that bathed in the bleach solution saw less severe skin damage and had better healing and hair regrowth than mice that were simply bathed in water.
If bleach were found to work similarly on humans, "the inexpensive, widely available household chemical could provide a new way to treat skin damage caused by radiation therapy, excess sun exposure or aging," the statement explained.
Some doctors are warning against DIY chemical treatments.
"I wouldn't recommend trying the bleach facial at home. ...We are not chemists, and we cannot produce the exact dilution rate the Stanford scientists used," Dr. Daniel Shapiro, a Scottsdale, Ariz., plastic surgeon, told ABCNews.com. "I think it's really difficult to figure out what .005 percent is. Any higher concentration of bleach can burn your skin."
ABC News contributed to this report.
