June 15, 2023 – Increasing evidence indicates that chemicals found in hair relaxers—products designed to straighten hair—and other hair care items marketed to Black girls and women contain endocrine-disrupting substances. These chemicals have been linked to early menstruation, reproductive health issues, and cancer. However, these products remain largely unregulated in the U.S.
An article published on June 13 in the New York Times highlighted how Black women and girls in the U.S., under societal pressure to maintain “neat” or “professional” hair, have long used various methods to straighten their hair, including chemical relaxers containing harmful substances like formaldehyde and phthalates. Black women interviewed in the article—including Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Tamarra James-Todd—shared experiences of scalp burns during treatment and significant hair loss afterwards.
Over the past 20 years, James-Todd, the Mark and Catherine Winkler Associate Professor of Environmental Reproductive Epidemiology, has conducted or co-authored nearly 70 studies demonstrating the link between chemicals in hair products and severe health issues that disproportionately affect Black women and girls. Recently, several large studies—primarily conducted by other Black women who began using relaxers as children—have further supported the connection between these products and health problems such as uterine fibroids, preterm birth, infertility, and cancers of the breast, ovary, and uterus.
“I’m not saying that more research isn’t needed, but there’s study after study,” said James-Todd. “At some point, you have enough evidence to start recommending that people reduce their use of these products or avoid them altogether.” She added, “I hate to say it, but in the U.S., we don’t care. It’s about the money.”
Read the New York Times article: The Disturbing Truth About Hair Relaxers
Photo: iStock/JackF