Federal lawsuit targets hair-straightening products l GMA
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ต.ค. 2024
- The suit alleges that hair-straightening chemicals in some beauty products caused uterine cancer.
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I stopped using relaxers in college as an exercise in accepting myself the way God made me. My family, very old school, complained about my hair nonstop for decades. Nothing terrible but just always had something to say about how I’d looked better with straight hair. But seeing this lawsuit my grandma told me that she now thanks God I didn’t let their disapproval stop me. We’re killing ourselves to fit a beauty standard built to be the complete opposite of who we are.
I agree...
Well said!
Wow, same story as me
Same with excessive heat by flat ironing. Those chemicals burn off in the air and we inhale that stuff. I too am learning to let my hair be. It doesn't want to be straight so I don't coerce and manipulate my hair to be straight. I left relaxers alone 13 years ago and relaxed twice.
Good for you!!! I went naturally 3years ago...sick of the scalp burns and loss hair!!
We should also stop wearing wigs, weaves and braids (with fake hair). Our hair is beautiful, it's sad and sickening that some African Americans practically LIVE with these 24/7, then justify it vy calling it "Protective style" 🙄. It's called self hate!
Whats crazy is none of those kids on the box got perms! It was straightened without chemicals.
That is crazy… I got my first relaxer around 5 or 6. I stopped using them in my early 20s. Edges gone, hair not growing in areas. A mess
At the minimum, they should be charged for false advertising
No more relexer😲😲😲😲am definitely gonna spread the word here in South Africa
I remember hearing one of the child models as and adult saying that!
@@lady.p. Facts. I know our sisters mainly complain about natural hair cuz of the work that goes in. But the convenience is NOT worth it.
Nope. The companies are not solely to blame. The FDA has not cared about the health of black women as they deserve, because they followed the Congressional lead. They should be held responsible, for certain, but the regulatory agencies need to be held accountable, as well.
👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Amen to that
Fda cares about no one’s health it’s the feds
THIS ⬆️ ⬆️
You are FDA didn’t care about people their job is to protect businesses, bottom line.
I had relaxers when I was younger and did them as a stylist for over 25 years. I also had a rare form of ovarian cancer in 2009.
My sister use to get them a lot too and she has breast cancer right now. We were both told our cancers were non-hereditary. Honestly this wouldn’t surprise me because most products for black women’s hair are cancer causing (found that out after my diagnosis.) That’s why I talked to my daughter about them. She tried them a hand full of times and never did them again.
I wouldn’t recommend a relaxers or most products on the market to anybody.
@@hollandmarielleTV the more I’m learning the more I’m thinking about it.
I’m so sorry
@@ms.j154 I am one of the fortunate ones in that I knew something wasn’t right and I insisted did they check me. It took me going to 15 or 20 doctors to get my diagnosis because they kept telling me it was something else or it was in my head. I was told that did not fall on there. Any other risk factors for ovarian cancer, and that’s what they used to keep putting me off. But I found the right doctor and mine was called early. The oncologist told me I was lucky because it was about to spread when they got it. I lost the ability to have children so I’m was glad I already had my son and my daughter. She was 4 when it happened and now she’s 17. My son was 21 at the time and now he’s 35. It is funny because when I was pregnant, I was upset about the age difference, but when that happened, I knew if anything happened to me, my son could take care of my daughter.
My sister on the other hand is currently battling breast cancer, so it’s been rough on her especially the chemo. But she’s a fighter. She went to work almost every day. She may have miss two or three days. And hers is aggressive, but she’s facing that head on.
But in all honesty, I did all the hair types, and I tell all women before you put any chemical on your head or allow anybody to do it find out what the ingredients are, and look up every single last one of them.
I’m in my 50s now and I was 38 when it happened but I have people fussing at me because I won’t color my hair and that’s why.
@@ms.j154 and by the way, thank you I really appreciate that.
When you say "most products", do you mean non relaxers as well as relaxers?
I’ve been warning people about the potential health risks of using relaxers for years. Years ago, I remember seeing a video here on YT of a black woman who was a former police officer, and she had, on occasion, attended the autopsies of victims, which is very common. She described seeing a postmortem craniotomy of a black woman, and she questioned the attending pathologist about a large black lesion at the top of her brain. She says that the pathologist told her that he frequently sees those lesions on the brain tissue of black women, and that it was likely caused by the frequent use of hair relaxers. For the life of me, I cannot find that video anywhere online, let alone here on YT. If anyone runs across it, please post a link here. Thanks.
Wow!
And it glows.
I remember seeing this vid, I can’t find it either though 😭
I seen something similar where the coroner said black women have like a green look to their brains. He could tell when it's a black woman's brain...how many people knew and no alarms were sounded
WTF! I don't know why it's not made public for everyone's safety! Why is it even sold in stores?! What's even scarier is that children are using it.
All I know is that I had a belly full of fibroid tumors removed ten years ago. Back then no one could tell me what caused them and so I decided to have a complete hysterectomy to protect my health. When I first heard this it was like a lightbulb went off in my head. I do not smoke, drink, etc. but there was one thing I did every 3 to 4 months for 39 years. I had my hair relaxed and had been doing so since I was 16 years old. I can assure anyone that there was no mention of cancer or tumors during all these years of having my hair done. Women knew about the potential for scalp burns, weakening of the hair shaft, but no one said anything about cancer and tumors.
I wonder why? I have often wonder why we used such harsh chemicals on our hair,without realizing our biggest organ was our skin.These harsh chemicals are absorbed through the skin and goes straight to the blood stream.
I got a relaxer once or twice in high school and I remember the stylist saying my natural thick hair will thin out over time and then pointed to her daughter who's hair was thin and straight. Apparently her daughter had a head full of thick long hair when she was a girl and as she got more touch ups the hair growing in was different texture.
Me and my mother have uterine fibroids. It seems like a plague for black women. I know other black women that have them too.
Me to.
@Barbara Lee I also have uterine fibroids which I discovered in 2019 after having symptoms of uncontrollable bleeding, weight again in my stomach, and frequent urination. I wanted to save my uterus so I had a myomectomy where 16 fibroids were removed (larger ones). The doctor informed that fibroids mainly develop in black women but he didn't know why.
I really believe the perms and different chemicals that we use harm our bodies. I'm thankful to now be natural for the past 6 years. I will never use a relaxer again.
I was relaxed for years and natural for 13 years. Something tells me it’s not only the relaxers. All of the “natural” haircare over the counter products were approved by the same FDA. Those ingredients may be just as harmful. The goal is to profit.
For this reason I learned to make my own hair and body oils.
Relaxers are not FDA-approved.
🥺 That is true... Best to make our own
Honest question. What natural ingredients or concoction do you then wash your hair with?
That takes a lot of time to make your own oils though. I just use grease, and my hair does fine. Grease + water. That's all you need. Let's keep it simple
Yes! There are various resources online that reveal the harmful ingredients found even in shampoos and leave-in conditioners.
I remember having pressed hair for an interview and then starting work with my natural hair. I always switched between natural and pressed aka straightened hair after I stopped relaxing. The women took my hair change so personally that they would mean mug me whenever they saw me. I was so young, I had no idea they would be so invested in my hair choices. BW were literally not getting hired based on if their hair was straight or natural.
It's still like this. I switched to wigs because of it. So many people hate our hair.
@Sparkles P Are jealous of... Hating our hair is just a cover-up, dear. It's jealousy & envy "well covered"
so true
I wore my natural hair most of my 65 years since a teen. For a brief period in my 20s had a curly perm. Cut it all off in '87 been natural since. Let me tell you I caught HELL in '87 from my family and strangers in public( all Black). ...nasty comments, barred from a wedding, name called. Interesting that some of those people are now flaunting their natural hair. One of them now owns a natural hair salon.
I worked at a job with natural hair but then cut it and started wearing an afro So funny, the side eye looks I got. It was like they thought I was going to bring an AKA to work. Gotta ignore these dumb AF's.
I’m a black American living in East Africa. I’ve been natural for years, and it feels so good being in a country with women who embrace and love their natural hair. I see braids, twists, fros, and beautiful kinky and coily hair. My sisters, please don’t believe the lie. Our hair is beautiful in its natural state. It tells our story.
Are you serious? If you talking about Ethiopia then I quess you can't see all the fake hair and wigs they wear there. They using chemicals there too ok
Amen!!!
The debate is NOT about that, it's about the dangerous chemicals. Mind your own business about what others do with their hair. Perhas you should talk about the skin lightening!
@@Mimi-zh7wc no she’s right black people really do have an internalized hatred for they own hair texture which is sad instead of trying to not abide to unrealistic beautiful standard contrary to your own try embracing and glorifying your own hair why try to look like something your not at the expense of your health thats ridiculous
Well, natural hair is VERY common these days. From people wearing cropped cuts, afros, cornrows, locs, twists, etc. And you see people in all sorts of professional positions wearing natural hairstyles. I think that has been a tremendous change over the past 30 years. Also so many more product options, so much more information available for natural hair today. I love it!
As a former cosmetologist, a few of the stylists that I used to work with developed different types of cancer or reproductive problems. We always suspected it was directly related to working with these types of chemicals. It's really sad.
My Mom made me get relaxers when I was a child. I have been natural for 12 years. Family would criticize my natural hair. I guess after this report they will leave me alone. 🤷🏾♀
This should be an international lawsuit. They sold this outside the USA. These companies are international and therefore must pay for this in every currency they got the cash in.
I'm in my mid 40s now and decided to go natural in the late 90s, when natural hair wasn't so popular here in the US. I made the decision after I saw pictures of women with natural hair, and I was drawn to the beauty of it and never looked back! Freeing myself from chemical relaxers was one of the best choices I could ever make! I really hope sisters are taking heed to this very serious warning, as I know some are still getting relaxers. 🙏
I'm 48 and I went natural at 15 years old. Even before that, I was disinterested in bone straight hair and rarely relaxed. I also, never dyed my hair or wore false nails. Just imagine for decades, the combination of relaxer, dyes and hair products under a hot hooded dryer, acrylic nails and all the toxins from that. Our women are suffering.
The Asians use chemicals to straighten their hair as well, I don't hear them complaining about cancer.
@@sodvine3486 Oh hush and get more informed before you come with the nonsense.
@@BlackButterFlyTongue what am I not informed about you with your ignorant self. How can something untop your head affect your uterus? Shouldn't it affect your head instead? Maybe cancer of the scalp or something? Let them foolerize you more...😂😂 The gov juice is causing most if not all of this.
@@BlackButterFlyTongue am telling you..
These studies have been around for a very long time. These companies need to be held accountable for this.
Its all about the mighty dollar
@@YLee-cw2yn stop gaslighting and victim blaming. I’m not going back and forth with you.
Yea, that's how I happen to know the foaming agent cocamide causes cancer. Because this has been going on for years, they let these p.o.s get away with murder.
Didmt forve anyone to use them
@@YLee-cw2yn a lot of black women NEVER knew about this. That’s assuming that every single black woman that’s touched a box of relaxer would have known this or known that it can clean metal. Overall and those that know just don’t care if they still choose to use it.
If you are going to talk about hair relaxers, you need to consider hair dyes as well.
I just googled it and saw that it was the same research group that found the 60% increase in breast cancer risk from permanent hair dyes. This was not in our medical school curriculum but this is information doctors should know.
No, we’re talking about hair relaxers right now.
They don't want to talk about it because the lawsuit on popular hair brands that is being used to dye their hair would be even higher. There are more people in this world that dye their hair then people who use hair relaxers. Many hair dye companies would go broke if the truth came out.
Exactly!!!
Who still uses boxed hair dye? There have been vegan options for years.
My mom does this and wouldn’t listen to me when I warned her that it could effect her health. She used to perm my head as a kid until I made her stop. I had to teach myself and my hair self love.
✨💖✨
Cap
This is a lot of our experience .. my mom was the same... and I stopped using relaxers when I was old enough to make my own decisions
Good for them. Be the fly in the ointment. SHAKE IT UP.
@@AngelDrewThomas What are you.. 12? Stop with the word "CAP".
Relaxers, glue for eyelashes, and false false fingernails. People have no idea what kind of chemicals we exposing ourselves to. So whatever happens it’s on you. Knowledge is power.🌸
I wouldn't say it's on you. That implies that the companies who produce these products have no responsibility to disclose the potential side effects.
@@jgerald8401 The information is available to the public but people have the tendency to be superficial and don’t care about the effects of the chemicals that they expose themselves to until it’s too late. And if that’s the case we’ve known about chemical hair relaxers for a long time now and the damage it causes, but even though it causes cancer people still use hair relaxers. So now what?
Thank u very much! Just be responsible at your own risks!!!
I used hair relaxers for over 20 years from age 10-32. I stopped using them almost 10 years ago, and I can only hope that no serious damage was done to my body. I did have a myomectomy to remove fibroids about 7 years ago.
fibroids are linked to relaxers too.
@@lolipoppz Yes, it was one of the reasons why I decided to stop getting relaxers.
I also had a myomectomy to remove fibroids and had relaxers from 5-19. I’m 32 now. Something not adding up.
Same here. I had 2 myomectomies. I finally had my baby last year. I stopped relaxing in 2018. I relaxed my hair for over 20 years.
I am natural and I have been natural for over 10 years now. When I worked at a beauty supply store, I remember helping this one woman who wanted a relaxer for her little child. I strongly advised that she don't use a relaxer on her daughter's hair for the chemicals in the relaxer are harmful and can cause damage to the brain etc., This lady got real curt (short) with me and said with a stern tone, " I am a nurse and it will take years for that to develop. " I kept quite after that and walked away. When I see stuff like this, I always think about my customers who chose not to listen to me about going natural. Even if you don't want to wear your natural texture you can heat train your hair. Relaxing your hair should never be the first option. Honestly relaxing should never be an option. There are healthier alternatives to wearing your hair straight.
Wow literally my mom is a stylist and was recently diagnosed with brain cancer smh. They said years it working around chemicals probably played a role.
Wow. The "nurse" actually admitted what you were trying to warn her about.
I’m a natural with heat trained hair. I never try to get bone straight. I use 300 degrees or less and blow it out so it’s kinky-straight. I love the volume especially when it reverts a little. And if I choose to wear my curls I can go back unlike relaxer. I wish I would’ve done this instead those years I had a relaxer. My hair is the longest (waist length) and the healthiest it’s ever been. I agree, if women want that look they are better off using heat instead of chemicals. The damage, health risk isn’t worth it, and natural hair looks better anyway.
So sorry to hear this about your mom may God heal and keep her in his arms always
You did your part as for warning her keep doing it no matter what wow what a nutty nurse
I’ve been getting my hair pressed with a hot comb since I was 12. Lady here in Dallas, lord rest her soul, had an unmatched skill for it. Even developed her own products to make the hot comb create the same result as a flat iron, but more thick and full of body, and with no heat damage to your ends.
I said all that to say… I’ve witnessed a few different women over the years at her shop that came in requesting the best press of their life for the “relaxer commercial” they were starring in. Like what the actual F!?
It’s been dishonest and doomed from the start. SMH
The fact that they SMELL like something that shouldn’t be anywhere near our bodies was enough for me to stop getting those at a very early age. Before I had locs, I would wear sew-ins and I even stopped that because who knows what’s in that hair?
I hated the smell of relaxers as a kid and I was so pissed when my baby sister put that shit in my head, and all my hair fell out within days. I just remember my grandma grabbing my hair by the handfuls ☹️😭 Ugh. Stop using that stuff y’all! Let that mess get dusty on the store shelves.
Agree also watched a video of someone putting perm on a soda can and how it burned / melted the whole can
@@monaymonay7446 stfuuu!! Seriously? Omg I probably would’ve cried after seeing that.
I stopped doing that when I was 19 years old and never looked back. My mom did it religiously and died of ovarian cancer over 15 years ago. It was fast and aggressive, too; she died 6 weeks after discovery. I knew there was a connection. The reason I stopped was because I didn't know what those chemicals would do to my body and now, look at this. Ben Crump et al, take all of these fools to the cleaners!
My mom started relaxing my hair at 6 years old. At 26, I had uterine fibroids.
Also everyone, beware of certain leave-in conditioners, hair moisturizers, conditoners, shampoos, etc. as many contain chemicals that can cause hormone imbalances and are linked to development of fibroids. Definitely examine the list of ingredients and keep it as simple as possible.
Unfortunately, we never knew the harms of relaxers and perms but I tell you once I got older and found out I stopped using them. I went natural in 2012 and never gave my daughter a relaxer. I just don't recommend putting any chemical in your hair that can and will get into your scalp, and gets into your blood stream. Once you know better, you gotta do better. A big eye opening documentary for me was Chris Rock's Good Hair. I pray I'm not gravely affected by the years of relaxer usage. All my love to those who have cancer.❤️
Same! It was a right of passage in the black community. You were a superstar of you got a relaxer.
When you put something on your scalp that burns it, it is clear it is toxic. I don’t believe women didn’t know, they simply didn’t allow themselves to care because they wanted straight hair. Everyone knew these were toxic chemicals. When they’d come out with new ones claiming to be “gentler” or without this chemical or that ingredient…that never resonated with people that not only was what they were removing toxic, but that some other toxin had to be added to achieve the same result?
I was told I couldn't have children at the age of 20. I went natural for years after that due to wanting to deal with imposter syndrome. At the age of 29 + no relaxers, I got pregnant with my daughter.... BUT the OB/GYN said I couldn't have children at all. NOW, I have 2 children. I dodged cancer...I dodged Uterine Cancer. Thank God I stopped. I started getting perms at the age of 17 because my natural hair was so big and crazy. My mom grew tired of straightening it with the hot comb, only for me to sweat it out later. I was getting perms every 8 weeks until the age of 20 and was already told my uterus could not bare children. I can only imagine the long-term affects these chemicals would have caused to my body. I can't believe it costs us our health to look European - straight hair is perfect and beautiful. Coily hair is ugly and unmanageable, unprofessional, and childish - showing lack of maturity in womanhood. I'm almost 38... people think I'm 20 or 19. When I straighten my hair, I get these comments.... "Girl, now you look like a black woman." "Who did your hair? Keep it this way, it's better." "You've finally grown up and did something about that big hair." "Did you cut it off and get you a good wig, thank God."
You are right about that! People have to realize they have to give your body a break from the chemicals.
I lost my hair due to complications of my illness. It grew back and I have had it natural since. My stylist has been trying to get me to go back to a relaxer, texturelizer, or even to dye because she things it would be more manageable that way. After she told my sister she hated 4c hair which is my hair type I stopped going all together.
@@Serenityblu23 I stopped going to stylists too. When I was younger, I had no clue how to take care of my hair, and my stylist was getting me a relaxer or texturizer every month instead of telling me to straighten it. Crazy right? My stylist also did not like natural hair and commented on it in general when I started transitioning. I do my own hair at home now, and have been relaxer free for almost 8 years.
@Cindy99765 I wish I knew other hair styles for my natural hair so I'm not paying 200 bucks for braids or marley twists.😭 all I know are twists, or twist outs.
@@Serenityblu23 Totally hear you! I started watching tutorials on youtube for braiding and I think the best for box braids are the crochet method or the rubber band method because those extensions used to slip right off my hair when I tried other ways. I also like crochet afros so I can get the look of my natural hair without it being out.
They need to also check and see what relaxers are doing to little girls. They created just for me relaxers in the 80s for little girls. There are mother's who relax their children's hair as early as 2 years old. Their hair follicles aren't even mature and their poor little sensitive scalps. I also wonder about the shampoos and conditioners. The past few years the sales of relaxers went down and other products have increased in prices. Especially if they put the word natural on it. They don't care. They only care about money. I also wonder about the chemicals they put on wigs, and braiding hair. Some many women have broke out with horrible rashes on their neck, face and scalps. They tell you to soak braiding hair and extensions in apple cider vinegar and it's literally slime in the water. I will continue to wear my Afro
I had to have a hysterectomy in 2022, I was also told to stop perming/relexing my hair. I haven't put a perm/relaxer in my hair since June 2022. People please be mindful of these products...
I had to have a hysterectomy in 2014 as well and I never understood the cause of all the tumors I had. I think I know the cause now.
Please be careful. A lot of non blk doctors go straight to a hysterectomy for blk female patients without telling them there are other alternatives that could be used instead of removing the uterus.
@@ndo533 I have a black female doctor, that had tried several methods over the years. But my bleeding was getting to the point that I was severely anemic. I had a perm/relaxer in my hair since the 80's.
@@ndo533 That's true on what you said about non blk doctors.
I had hysterectomy as well and I used relaxers for years this is sad
Not just cancer but huge Fibroids resulting in Hysterectomies in thousands of Black Women. Black hair stylist who died from Cancer or came down with serious health issues.
Omg this is probably why black women suffer from fibroids the most too!!
@@coilyheadedbby Bingo! 🎯
The Lawyers have already queued up their commercials.
Haven’t relaxed my hair for 10 years, but recently found out that I have 15 fibroids, one particularly the size of a baby’s head. I’m having a hysterectomy in May. Hearing about the details of this lawsuit breaks my heart. This country clearly does not care about black folks at all.
@@archersunshine8890 I'm praying for you hon. ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
I just cut my hair yesterday after using relaxers my whole life. My hair is shorter now but I can see the natural texture. My first time actually seeing my hair in it's natural state since I was a baby. I feel happier than ever.
May I suggest that you wet it everyday and seal the moisture with a water based high protein leave in conditioner and oil, I highly suggest a mixture of glycerin and extra virgin olive oil, with a few drops of essential oils for growth, clove, fenugreek and rosemary. You can also make a hair spritzer with the same dried spices by boiling it for 15 minutes in water, let it cool, strain and keep it in the fridge and add a few drops of each essential listed, to preserve it longer.
I really think we have so many chemicals in everything we as women used from cosmetics, hair products, nails etc; everything at this point is causing cancer.
💯
Yes, I was thinking about nails too. Who knows. The women in the nail salon wear mask. Then again they're breathing in all that dust and fumes all day.
@@fatearamines6848 Already studies that show constant exposure to nail polish and nail products causes grave illness.
Yes...the chemicals used for nails is dangerous
I can only imagine other products that could be harming us, and we would never know until years later
There are loads of products that are unsafe and cause cancer, high cholesterol, etc but people have to make THEIR OWN decisions. No one forces us to use relaxers, birth control, smoke, or eat pork which all 4 can cause adverse affects to our health over time. It's also very likely that it's not just the relaxers alone but free radicals caused by a combination of other harmful products/foods we introduce to our bodies.
If you aren’t buying organic products to eat, then you certainly can be harmed. The preservatives and additives in food today are killing us just as much as a relaxer can cause cancer. Profits over people is what this country is all about.
Literally everything. Your food is one..
@@tias.6675 You are so right about the food. First they say, eat a healthy mix but try to find anything that isn't dangerously over processed or full of pesticides.
I stopped using chemical relaxers back in 2009. I’m so thankful for Chris Rocks movie Good Hair that initiated my natural hair journey.
His movie did that for me too!
Good, Im a curly haired Latina and got suckered into the straight is beautiful dogma in my teens/early 20s...Im much older now and its been years since I blowdried my hair straight...it feels so liberating to love my curls
@@maamea.207 This movie was the second reason why I decided to stop having my hair relaxed. My relaxers were all done at the salon, and still made me feel nauseated initially.
Wow!! I never saw that movie. Not even sure that I heard of it before now.
@@smileyt7581 please watch it. “Good hair” thats a documentary about our hair by Chris Rock
My daughter has always had beautiful thick natural hair. I’m so glad I NEVER relaxed her hair at a young age. At 25, she continues the natural route.
Same here my daughters are 21 & 20
😫Phew!!! I was just about to start back relaxing my hair after stopping a few years ago. 👍🏽Glad I saw this🙌🏽🙏🏾🇹🇹
Thankfully, I’ve been natural for 33 years… I stopped the creamy crack in 1990. My hair NEVER became “smooth and silky” with those products because of my very kinky coily type of hair. It looked crazy. So glad I’ve listened to my intuition. I’ve been natural before it became a way of life for some Black women.
These companies are guilty AF. I knew those perms and relaxers were harmful. If it can burn my skin, I decided I didn’t want it on my body anymore.
Them perms are dangerous especially the ones with Lye. You know something’s not right when you can’t even scratch your hair a little without that perm burning your scalp. I’m glad I stopped getting one years ago.
We also need to address other hair chemicals such as bleach and hair dyes. These release toxins in the body that can also affect a woman's health just as much as the relaxers. Women, keep your hair natural in its purest form as much as possible.
Wow...I had fibroid tumors like hell, And I had a hysterectomy at 38 and I don't even have kids 😔I've used these products my whole like until 3 years ago at 40...
Sorry to hear. I've never been pregnant so I don't even know if I can get pregnant at 41. The plus side is that I was raised in a black-majority Caribbean country so my physical health has always been better than black or white people in Northern countries. We had all different hair types and hairstyles. Some people tried to judge you if you didn't have straight, dyed hair in a bun. But people always chose styles for their preference and lifestyle instead of some sort of racist/colorist/discriminatory rhetoric. I had a teacher as a teenager who always wore her hair in a low fade number 1 or 2. Nearly bald. She never worried about her hair. I see that amongst African women who proudly wear their traditional hairstyle and head wraps and do not care what other black people or other races think.
Yup my late mom had them. I had ovarian cysts before
I stop putting that crap on my head when they link this to fibroid tumors...
Honestly? Up to 70 percent of women will develop fibroids during their reproductive years. And they're almost always (99 percent of the time) harmless. But that doesn't mean you should ignore them. Fibroids can cause complications like excessive bleeding and reproductive problems.
there are plenty of women who are natural that also have fibroids. Plus, correlation does not equal causation. I don’t think relaxers are the cause of fibroids.
@@ItsAllAnillusion Many have had relaxers before returning to natural hair as well.
@@GurldeTRINI Exactly. I got relaxers once a year from age 5-19y/o. I stopped because I started to learn how topical products can penetrate our skin and enter our blood stream. I went fully natural at 24y/o and I was diagnosed with fibroids at 27.
There are companies that wouldn’t hire you unless you straightened your hair which is why we used relaxers. They should be sued too. I personally have been harassed on the job and on social media
The aunts in my family developed fibrosis in their late 20s early 30s. My cousins and I stopped relaxing our hair for over a decade now. And none of us have developed fibrosis, some of us are in their 40s. I have always thought it was tied to the relaxer. I've been waiting for this lawsuit and attention on this issue.
I'm Glad I only was relaxed from age 13 to 22. It would have been less if people didn't talk me out of growing out my natural hair when I was 16. I hope these women get justice
Same here 😂 14-24 and i been stopped before this came out. Got tired of the burns and stunted growth. Breakage as well. I’ll never go back lol
@CJSpeaks yes! Especially with the blow outs available to us now there's no reason to relax. Back in the day we were looking like James brown anytime we straitened our hair
Your natural hair is gorgeous ❤
There might be long term affects to using those toxic chemicals repeatedly for years in your childhood.
I hope more studies can be done on the effect of relaxers on children and how that's effected their development and health in adulthood. Black women need to know what we're dealing with health wise.
I gave up relaxers since 2009. This is not surprising at all, it's all about the almighty dollar in America.
That’s around the same time I gave up on relaxers. All natural now
Wait until you find out what's in the food we eat.
Younger women are returning to what they call “safe” relaxers. They’re all over TH-cam with it 😳
there is nothing safe about chemically burning your hair.
What is that
Like was said there is no safe vape or cigarettes,there is no safe cosmetic products much,either.Today's cosmetic s say that they're "cruelty free",but they are not cancer free.
I had one relaxer/perm in the 6th grade. I am now 35 years old. At my young age I knew it felt unnatural (because it was) and never pit the chemical on my hair again.
Smart!
Similarly, all my friends had relaxers and my sister got a jeri curl. But I knew that it wasn't for me. The dependency on someone else doing my hair was a major turn off for someone who loved to travel and planned on living abroad.
I feel very sorry for women that have unknowing compromised their health due to these toxic products. My hope is that women will realize that this is a real issue, and seek other natural ways for beauty enhancement.
Thank goodness, it was always so strange to me that the make you wear gloves but then say "avoid" your scalp which was hard to do even with petroleum jelly. Thankfully,I haven't relaxed since 2008. I went natural and never looked back 🥰
Y’all we need to watch out for alot of other hair products!
Beauty products in general
Indeed there’s alot of junk in even what people promote to be natural, they are getting people now by advertising Paraben free, pthalates free, but still have two three chemicals that’s harmful to the body as a whole.. 😔
I totally agree. I’m keeping my ears open.
It's about making money. Industries don't care about people dying.
Bingo and that’s with everything from food, healthcare, environment, etc
Good hair is natural hair
Exactly 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
Anyone who's ever stepped into a hair salon can tell the amount of chemicals that go into these types of products.
It can't be healthy.
And yet like smoking, eating high amounts of sugar, or pork people do it because they enjoy it. It's their personal choice to request and pay for beauty services. A service that is a luxury not a necessity. I don't know, is it really then the manufacturers fault if they become sick???
@@Littlething41 the problem is that there are no warning on the box that suggest that it may cause cancer. Even smoke packaging have those warning.
@@Littlething41 yeah, i hear ya, but its also like the whole asbestos in the baby power, no one would've used it, had it said it gave you cancer.
But also with the way these hair products smell, you should really be expecting an unfavorable reaction in your body, especially if you're soaking the top of your head in them.
@@sowhat1674 Yeah very true about Cigarette packages now but it wasn't always like that. Truth be told, do we really need a label on cigarettes to know it can cause lung disease or cancer? And the label is only there so people can't sue and millions kept on smoking. A chemical that smells strong and straightens your hair...........With Relaxers a person can look up the ingredients to learn the potentially harmful affects but also the fact that most relaxers may say, "Professional Use Only" to me indicates there are risks but people look past that for the results they hope to receive. My argument is for people/woman to be smart and don't blindly think Manufacturers will be truthful about the lasting harm of anything.
@@Littlething41 It's not about choosing to do it. It's about improper labeling. Same as Johnson & Johnson not disclosing that their talcum powder contained trace amounts of asbestos and could cause cancer. These things have to be disclosed on packaging, then let the consumer decide if they still want to use a cancer-causing product
no hair is ‘unmanageable’. your ancestors made it through without perms. you will find a way. it’s not worth it
I stopped using relaxers after I had surgery to remove fibroids. My surgeon ,an award winning professor told me that he was researching the link between relaxers and fibroids and ovarian cancer. I was 35 when I stopped using relaxers, I had been relaxing my hair since the age of 4.
I'm not at all surprised by this development, and I'm so sorry/hurt for the women who developed cancer. My heart and prayers go out to each and every one of you. I stopped relaxing my hair in 2019. There's no telling what those chemicals might have done to me after 39 years 😧
I stopped using relaxers in 2021. I guess I stopped a little to late.
I was relaxed from age 10 to 39 and I went natural 2 years ago…. Never going back.
She can’t prove relaxers caused her cancer. We don’t know what other lifestyle habits she and others had in their lives that could have been the culprit.
Furthermore, no one put a weapon to these women’s head and made them use any particular hair products…relaxers, or otherwise. 2:59
Very true.. But human love to jump on band wagons
@@semoneg2826 Exactly!
A friend worked as a hula dancer in a Hawaiian restaurant and had very long hair she dyed black. She had to be hospitalized for encephalitis. The doctor told her to stop dyeing her roots. I recognized the proximity but didn’t see the dye could go through the skin. In the 70s when people were making their own balms, lotion, etc with organic properties academic science talked about molecule size and ineffective, not absorbed. Now we see that is not necessarily true. There is talc contributing to ovarian cancer, and stories like this posted one.
I know people who are allergic to hair dye. Their faces swell up and look malformed.
The same researchers that published this October paper that this news story is based on, previously published a paper about hair dye causing a 60% increase in breast cancer risk. You can find the paper on the NIH's website. I had no idea that dye could enter the bloodstream in sufficient quantities from simply being on the scalp. You learn something new everyday I guess.
Thank you for sharing this about hair dyes.
The skin is the largest organ. This is why most white people do not use soap or lotion. It's common sense if you cut your finger use antibiotic ointment to cleanse skin use alcohol prep pad so clearly it goes in the skin if wind makes skin dry then drains moisture out of the skin if heat causes sweat then it penetrates into the skin to the sweat glands. And as the old saying goes when the hair is nappy white people ain't happy when the hair is relaxed white people are relaxed 😎 with that said I might perm my hair soon I don't like how it is all over my head like this
@@monaymonay7446 Not that I have read any studies on the matter but soap and lotion companies have not lost the white people marketplace based on all the many commercials and brands that we see daily, not to mention their earnings. On the issue of you running for your next perm treatment, I say, be you. Go for it, nobody lives forever. Still I plan to continue with my natural hair, I just like the way it feels and the variety of styles possible.
How about the food we eat on a daily basis?. The use of drugs sold over counter? Like cigarettes, vape, etc.. Pple are also doing those things so why solely blame hair relaxers as only of the cause?.
My ex boyfriend ex wife died from uterus cancer a few years ago she was only in her mid thirties.
That’s terrifying. I’ve been using it since I was a kid and would get it every 2 months or so.
I stopped in my late 20s but really hoping there’s no damage that’s already been done, waiting to reveal itself.
Don’t claim it, you’ll be fine hun
Get regular checks!!
I am so grateful my mother never got me started on relaxers or perms and my hair was always natural. Scary to think what other products are out there that we don't know are causing diseases YET...
What's interesting is you said you're happy that your MOTHER never started you on relaxers. Many personal choices that we make for beauty or enjoyment can have adverse affects on our health. If a woman was introduced to relaxers by her mother and stuck with it for years, is it then the manufacturers fault if she becomes sick later in life? It's upsetting the products that can make us sick but beauty products are not a necessity and unfortunately all come with risks that in combination with other lifestyle choices can lead to adverse affects.
Same with my mother she refused and I just followed and never did it now today I have Sisterlocs… ❤
@@Littlething41 You must work for the hair companies or something, since you keep replying with this same comment under everyone else's comments.
Someone using something as a 'personal choice' doesn't relieve the manufacturer of responsibility if they knew the products they were selling could cause harm to their consumers..... That's why Johnson & Johnson ( and other Baby Powder manufacturers) had to pay up, because they knew for YEARS their products could cause illness. They never warned their customers of that small fact though, the same way the hair companies have been doing. Add on the predatory marketing strategies used in predominantly black spaces and this all seems a little bit more sinister (to me).
Same here! I would beg and beg but, eventually, I stopped caring about it by the time I was old enough to buy myself one.
@@LS-pd5wf Actually I'm a teacher and try to educate others to educate themselves. I just read labels and don't put the blame on others for my personal choices. People are not going to tell you the truth about the harmful affects of products and food just like so many on here educated themselves and went natural. They're not trying to sue ORS for the fibroids they had.
I'm glad I went natural in 2017 when I became conscientized and it was difficult at first adjusting to my natural texture and my entire time doing undergrad I decided to keep it short for convenience, but I missed having long hair that I can do different things with and so I've started growing it out. I'm grateful I've had mostly supportive people. Whether or not people want to admit, but whether or not you can wear your hair in its natural form speaks volumes on your self love and acceptance. We have unique features and are the only race with this texture. Imagine how powerful it would be if more black women embraced our natural beauty and created our own lane of beauty standards, instead of trying to fit in with others. Nothing more beautiful than how God created you to be ✨❤️🙏🏾.
Why the Federal Government don't band Medical Equipment, Food or Bath products that increase the risk of Cancer.
I've used these products all my life. I am almost 70now. My first time using it was 1967. Then it was every 6 weeks because of new hair growth. That's a lot more than 4 times a year!
Any health issues ?? If you feel comfortable sharing
I went natural in college and never looked back. Each time I think about relaxing my hair, I remember the thinning and breakage thats likely to follow. Not to mention the possible cancer. Smh. Flat irons work just as well at straightening hair ladies.
Spaghetti haired white lady here….anyone with lovely curls (IMO) should enjoy them!!!! They are lovely. I get that they are super hard to care for; but healthy natural hair is just gorgeous! I just deal with the straight blah I have. One whiff of a perm and you just KNOW you don’t want that on your scalp.
I’ve gotten relaxers since I was a kid and stopped then the world shutdown. That time forced me to learn how to care for my hair in its natural state. My hair has thrived since. I can’t see myself going back. Wash days are longer but whatever. Hearing those chemicals are causing cancer is scary. For decades black women have gotten relaxers and now, NOW this is being found out, shameful
Our hair is not like silk, it is like LAMB'S WOOL. Soft, warm, fluffy. Let's be proud of it
Absolutely😊
I think this explains or is linked to the Endometriosis I suffered with for 10 years.
I hate how EVERYTHING that we eat, drink, use, apply are cancer threats to our bodies, it's frustrating 😣
What’s crazy is all those girls pictured on the perm boxes with gorgeous hair saying that their hair was never permed but heat pressed. The Lies and deceit involved in advertising pictures of a natural haired silk press portraying that these harmful cancer inducing chemicals would produce such a result.
Please bring on the class action lawsuit. They’ve earned it years ago
It did produce those results for girls who actually had their hair taken of. Are you guys going to sue your mother's too ? Lord knows many of them slapped this crap in their daughters hair before they could talk.
Some post have genetically mixed race hair that does not need perm...heat press alone work
I agree. When I started getting perms at 5, I begged my mom to get Just For Me. Man, my hair NEVER looked like what those girls hair looked like. But after going natural and I had my first silk press, then I saw my hair looking like what I saw on them perm boxes.
And even if you get a permed, you STILL need to press your hair anyway to get the results you see on those boxes. The perms alone didn't do this, which is deceitful.
this is going to be a very hard suit to prove. my heart goes out to all these women ❤ absolutely heartbreaking.
They kinda already admitted fault saying its a cancer highly amongst African Americans meaning there's something your using that others aren't, distinguishing that shouldn't be rocket science.
@@deemc5836 Not as simple as that. Diabetes and obesity are also risk factors for uterine CA. Black women have higher rates of diabetes and obesity.
That’s what I’m thinking. Very hard because already the researchers are saying they need to conduct more research…like they haven’t quite nailed it…The food we eat is jammed packed with chemicals too. From chicken to green beans…what do we do 🤷🏾♀️
@Maxxi Tee read the ingredients and look them up.
@@gracesdaughter9074 true but I think it depends on circumstances of each women . My mom didn't deal with obesity or diabetes . She was a healthy eater and exercised regularly and then several years ago started getting uterine fibroids that developed into a uterine cancer called leiyomsarcoma (rare) and they couldn't pinpoint why and or the reason they became cancerous but she did indeed relax her hair for the past 25 years at that point.
I went natural back in 2010 and have been since. It was 2 factors:
(1) I saw an episode of “Dr. G, the medical examiner”, do an autopsy on a BW that was 40. When she did the cranium incision and peeled back the scalp, it had a clump of “white substance” sitting on her scalp. When she scraped it off to test it, it tested positive for LYE. Yes you read that correctly, the lye did not fully dissolve even after her death.
(2) I went 8 months without a relaxer. My hair was thick, shiny, and healthy. Haven’t had one since Oct 7. 2010.
What's the name of the episode? I googled and didn't find it.
@@apara2005 I honestly do not remember hun. This was my cousins favorite show because she used to want to be one. That was a one off episode I watched with her. Though most of those autopsies are due to drugs, I remember that specific episode.
Maybe this would encourage more women to go natural. Your God-given hair is so beautiful! Foxy Brown (Pam Grier)... need I say more?
Man this hurts my soul.
I stopped using relaxers back in 2013 and did my big chop in 2014. When I use to use relaxers, my hair wouldn’t grow past my shoulders and it would constantly break off. My mom put a relaxer in my hair when I was 4 but once I got to high school I started doing my own hair and at 17 I decided to start transitioning before I did the big chop. Now I have long mid back length natural hair. I love how versatile natural hair is and how I can go from curly to straight if I wanted to without a relaxer. I’m NEVER using a relaxer again.
I wonder about coloring (Hair dye) your hair using peroxide, bleach, purple shampoo would also cause cancer?
I saw that article a few years back stating that hair dye when women of color died they did an autopsy, and they found a thick green substance around their brain due to hair dye
@@coffeecup6751 Thanks for the information.
Our hair is so much stronger and healthier when natural. Also our hair is so versatile, if professionally straightened I can get it just as straight and silky as the hair they advertise on relaxer boxes. The style may not last as long but the health of yourself outweighs the duration of a style.
I stopped using relaxer 4 months ago. My scalp is so tender… it hurts . Before I started relaxing my hair I never had that issue . Now the slightest touch cause me pain. There is a saying ‘ when you know better … you do better ‘ so that’s what I am doing now ❤
My mom and her sisters (5 total, boomer gen) NEVER had fibroids. They had relaxers in their mid-ish 20s to early 30s. Their daughters, we had fibroids. Thank goodness none of us had uterine cancers. This is awful.
Been known about this! I'm glad people are aware of this.
Most of these companies, I believe value quantity over safety. I can’t even buy naturally grown fruit any more, without it being tampered with some type of chemical.
Up until I was 12, my mum would press my sister's and my hair with the hot comb. I remember my mother and sister hustling me into the bathroom to chemically relaxed my hair when I was 12. I didn't even know what was happening! No explanation! They treated it like some rite of passage. Over the years, I would go for periods of time without chemical relaxers, but then go back to them. In '94, I started growing dreads. I had them until 2013 when I cut them; I just wanted a change of hairstyle. I chose to keep my hair loose and natural, not with a relaxer. I learned to care for my un-dreaded natural hair from books and videos. Unfortunately, my sister developed fibroids. She tried natural remedies, even medical trials, but sadly ended up having a hysterectomy.
🥺...This should not be happening. Just getting your hair done and then now you gotta worry about all the crazy side effects down the road! I use to dye my hair alot in my early 20s...I remember hearing on the news how the chemicals in hair dye could cause cancer, that really urked me and it was one of the main reasons why I opted for growing my hair out. Hopefully, more natural & affordable products can be developed.🐾❤
I just do my hair with dark and lovely 😱
I literally just said I was about to start getting a perm again. Guess this is my sign to not.
Damn. Gaslight into changing our hair to “look presentable” acceptable in the work place, and in the media. Changes hair, places life at risk for cancer. Black women just want to live peacefully and thrive like everyone else.
Very true
Been using them for years, never had an issue.
Notice how everyone knows what black women look like when the topic is negative? If the topic was about love, success, and beauty in the black community, all the image would be of MIXED women. But when it's something negative, SUDDENLY the darkest women with the most West African features are featured as black women again. So interesting.
Same with commercial ads about visiting California. (If your light your right...if your dark, get back...)
Good point
I’m glad I have gotten to the point I stopped using relaxers around my sophomore year in college. I don’t miss the putrid smell of the chemical, putting the timer on to make sure I don’t leave it in too long nor the lesions I would get from the relaxers either.
Blk women don’t listen to dr umar u should be investing that money in tour own community build schools hospitals etc
i cant imagine all the years of sickness they knew was happening to us
I can't imagine all the years of sickness people were inflicting upon *themselves* while knowing that chemicals can be deadly and may cause illnesses or long time health issues 🙄.
They don’t care about consumers health they just care about consumer dollars.
It's toilet bowl cleaner.
Everytime I would get a relaxer, I just would never take good care of my hair. I first got a relaxer entering high school and would get it a few times throughout high school. But I would never keep up with it because I would always cause my hair to break from lack of proper care. Also- I would just always end up gravitating toward weaves or braids instead. I even tried to get relaxer once again in my early 20s. And again I went right back to braids. I also liked how my natural textured afro looked even though I would always end up braiding back. Looking back I realized a relationship with relaxers wasn’t meant to be. And now I’m glad that it never worked out.
I learned i can starighten my hair without chemicals and it looks like i did. Can't believe i was tricked into believing i need that as a kid. Thank goodness my mom had my hair in braids and natural styles majority of the time as well. Sorry for those who got sick
Relaxed my hair until I was 23 and recently had uterine polyps removed. It may or may not be related as I stopped relaxing my hair over a decade ago.
And my mum is always telling me "relax your hair!! you should relax your hair!! Your hair is too nappy and difficult to tame relax your hair!!". Umm... no. My hair ain't even nappy. It's just shrinkage. She stays relaxing her hair. If her hair even becomes a little difficult to comb through she relaxes it again. Like it's normal for our hair to be difficult to comb through at times. And there are ways around that. She wouldn't know that tho. Cuz all she knows is relaxing her hair and keeping her hair straight and "pretty". She also thinks natural 4c or kinky hair isn't "attractive". 🙄
So very sad to have a mindset like that.
I stopped using hair relaxers 10 years ago. I just had a 15cm fibroid removed along with 4 smaller ones. I am healing well.
I relaxed my hair from age 12-23. I have a lot of hair and my grandma suggested getting a relaxer so my hair would be easier to “manage”. I agreed cause I was tired of the painful styling process.
The very last time I relaxed my hair, I had the worst scalp burns and I said “no more”! I was tired of getting burned. Just the fact that we’re taught to deal with the burn before washing relaxers out is one of the biggest red flags.
I’m so glad I’ve been natural for 7+ years now. I love my hair and have learned how to care for it and let it be. I’ve even learned how to do my own Marley twists and box braids from TH-cam. Relaxers are one of the biggest scams sold to black women…smh
I was diagnosed with stage 4 endometriosis in 2019. My Dr kind of hinted that I should stop using relaxers, so I did.