The Federal Drug Administration is proposing a ban on certain hair straighteners because they could be linked to cancer.
“It felt good,” Amanda Wisdom said as she talked about going natural.
She only chemically straightened or relaxed it once, a decision she now regrets.
Wisdom isn’t alone — some hairstylist said a number of their clients are ditching the perm and going natural.
“It’s a chemical. I think a lot of these new chemicals that they come out with we never know what the end result is,” Celebrity Hairstylist Derek J added.
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Some hairstylist said even though most of their clients are beginning to ween off hair straighteners, there’s still a concern about health problems down the road.
The FDA is now proposing a ban on hair straighteners that emit formaldehyde, citing a possible connection to uterine, breast and ovarian cancer
While studies show that uterine cancer rates are rising among all women, the increase is highest among Black women and other women of color.
Film and TV hair department director, Ralph Ochoa believes the ban will go too far.
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“I think it’s a horrible thing because the FDA approved this over 50 years ago,” said Ochoa.
Ochoa said the risk is in how the chemical straightener is applied.
“It’s supposed to be applied directly – as close to the scalp as possible without getting it on the scalp,” Ochoa explained.
“I’m not against relaxers, but if there was a way to do it in a safe way where it doesn’t cause cancer, things like that then I feel like that would be the best option,” Wisdom said.
The FDA is now urging people to really read the labels and avoid products that contain formaldehyde and other harmful chemicals.
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