Perming Yourself to Death

ToxinsFeatured
Written By Charlee Martin

Chemical hair relaxers cause a myriad of reproductive cancers, including breast, uterine and ovarian.

I grew up getting “perms”, officially called chemical hair straighteners. Not often - I was in elementary school in the 90s, which meant that jumbo “Brandy” braids was the going aesthetic. By the time I was in high school and college, I started dreading my hair, as “Lauryn Hill” was everywhere in the 2000s. But, sometimes I would cut my hair, sometimes mom couldn’t afford braids, sometimes I didn’t feel like combing my hair, and anytime that happened, I always went and got a perm. Which one? Optimum Super. It was easy, quick, and lasted about a month.

So you could imagine my shock, when I found out that my go-to brand was being sued. For what you may ask? Causing breast cancer, uterine cancer, ovarian cancer, endometriosis, infertility and uterine fibroids. And this isn’t anywhere in the mainstream news.

What are Chemical Hair Straighteners?

Chemical hair straighteners are still the most popular choice for Black women who need a quick, simple hairstyle that’s versatile for work and every-day life. Though it’s true straight hair is not exclusively considered the most attractive look - the expense of natural hairstyles, both in terms of cost and time, is usually what brings women back to the box. Also, television and media still heavily lean towards straight styles.

We can’t forget that Black-hair-textured racism is still at its height throughout the world, with students and employees still being told their natural hair is unacceptable. This forces women in lower paying jobs, or those who don’t want to risk trauma and bullying to turn to permanent hair relaxers as a means of straightening their hair.

Is society trying to kill us? Or are we unwittingly killing ourselves?

Recent studies have highlighted that these chemical hair straighteners are not safe; linking them to serious health issues such as uterine cancer, fibroids, breast cancer, and endometriosis. In addition to potential devastating health risks, chemical hair straighteners also lead to hair damage - inclusive of wiry unhealthy frizz that is prone to split ends, hair discoloration and breaking, and scalp inflammation that often leads to baldness (oftentimes permanent).

No one knew

Chemical hair straighteners, done mostly at home, utilise creams to break down the protein structure of hair, to achieve permanent deadening. It’s this destruction of the hair strand that gives the appearance of straightness. The chemicals involved in these treatments, include cyclosiloxanes, formaldehyde, parabens, phthalates, and sodium hydroxide, which have all been linked to serious health problems for decades.

Chemical hair straighteners have to be strong enough to break down the disulfide bonds in the hair's protein structure, permanently damaging the hair until new growth takes place (if it takes place, as these chemicals also attack the hair shaft and follicle, causing damage). A “neutralising” chemical is required to stop the action of chemical, and maintain the desired straight-pattern. As most of these perms are used at home, over-processing is common, with skin irritation and permanent damage being common.

Despite all of this being commonly known, manufacturers have done nothing about the formulation of these chemical straighteners to make them safer for consumers. Though there are other types of hair straightening processes out there that aren’t traditional chemical straighteners, such as Japanese heat straighteners, and Brazilian keratin treatments, these are more effective on looser curl patterns, and are not predominately used by Africans or those who are descendants of Africans. They are also not without their risks.

Black women have had a steady increase in reproductive health issues since the advent of chemical hair straighteners. Black women are now twice as likely as white women to have infertility issues according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Though the use of chemical hair straighteners isn’t the single attributable risk factor for infertility, the fact that we’re just coming to understand the reproductive health risk factors associated with chemical straighteners is problematic, and it’s safe to assume that these products have played a major role in our current reproductive crisis.

Lawsuits

A year ago, 35 year old Tamara Sigars filed a lawsuit that claimed L’Oreal and others caused her to develop ovarian cancer. She had been straightening her hair since she was 16 years old, and due to her diagnosis, she’s had to undergo a hysterectomy and chemotherapy at a young reproductive age.

Tragically, Tamara’s health is forever compromised, and she’s had to undergo life altering surgery - just from purchasing a hair product that she felt was harmless. Tamara’s overall longevity is also at risk.

Tamara, however, is a fighter. She is also extremely courageous. Her lawsuit set in motion a series of events that has now led to the 8,026 hair straightener lawsuits pending in the United States. These lawsuits have helped push the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) in the US to propose a ban on formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing chemicals in hair straighteners, one of the major contributors to health risks.

Still, the media has been exceptionally silent in reporting this critical and life-threatening issue.

Alicia Smith of Cleveland, Ohio US had no family of history of cancer at all, but developed uterine cancer at the age of 41. She had been using hair straightening products since she was 13 years old. Alicia is suing L'Oreal, Strength of Nature, SoftSheen-Carson (Dark & Lovely, Optimum and others), Luster, and Godrej Consumer Products (African Pride products).

“For too long, the cosmetics industry has failed to warn consumers of the presence of harmful chemicals in hair relaxers,” Smith’s attorney, Ashlie Case Sletvold, told Cleveland.com. “This has led to devastating consequences for women like Alicia Smith.”

There are other lawsuits pending for cosmetic companies, including hair dyes and other products - that too has had zero media coverage.

Alternatives

Natural hair styles that don’t use chemicals (silk press, twists, dreads, etc.) are the best alternative to chemical hair straightening.

Obviously, the safest thing to do is to straighten your hair without chemicals. A good old-fashioned “press-and-go,” now updated to the “silk press”, can last up to two weeks, and can be done in a way that adds moisture and lustre to the hair. When done by a professional, silk presses preserve the curl pattern and prevent damage to the hair shaft. This allows flexibility in styling, and can encourage hair growth. Excessive heat styling, though, can damage hair and kill the curl pattern over time, so breaks must be undertaken between presses.

Also, you can soften your hair with coconut milk, fruits, or oils like Jamaican Black Seed and Jojoba Oil, and just wear your hair out - in it’s natural state. Afro’s and twist-outs are probably as popular as straight hairstyles, if not more. And if you want glamour and low maintenance, dreads, twists and braids are still popular. Twists and braids, when done by a good braider, will encourage hair growth.

Sadly, we’ve been poisoned with perms. And lied to. Our mothers would never have saturated our small heads with chemicals that could’ve killed us or rendered us infertile. This is a travesty of justice, and we need to support these women who are seeking health justice for the attack on their reproduction. Personally, I’m not buying any products associated with these companies - including conditioners, hair dyes, oils, or even styling tools, until these women receive justice and they change their manufacturing practices.

Remember, though, this isn’t our fault. There are natural people who will tell you that you should have never been straightening your hair, will call you self-hating, and act as though you purposefully put your health in jeopardy. They’re lying. They’re victim blaming.

And worst, they’re using natural living as an excuse to marginalise and batter women, while letting the real perpetrators walk free.

Every woman should have the right to change her hair to any style she likes, without the fear of death. Yes, I grew up with Brandy and Lauryn Hill. But some women want to look like Naomi Campbell, and back in the day women wanted to look like the The Supremes. We should be able to play with our looks and enjoy our lives, without the risk of poisoning.

Joy, excitement and variety in life is real natural living. I wish these women the best of luck in their lawsuits, and hope their sacrifice will force companies to create products that are safe, or they shouldn’t bother manufacturing and selling them at all.

For more information around the risk of chemical hair straighteners from Consumer Notice:

Charlee Martin
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