Early in life, we are taught that beauty and pain are synonymous. I remember, as a little girl, watching my big sister in the salon chair, tears streaming down her face as she gripped the chair tightly. The culprit? A hair relaxer. The hairdresser reassured her by saying “Don’t you want your hair as straight and as pretty as the little girl on the box?” She nodded, tears welling up in her eyes. But the truth is, beauty is not pain nor should it come at the cost of our health.
Over a decade later, the National Institutes of Health confirmed that the burning, teary eyes, nausea, and skin irritation we experienced when using a hair relaxer were caused by formaldehyde, a known human carcinogen linked to cancer. Despite several proposals to ban it, the FDA has yet to act, while formaldehyde is already banned in the European Union, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Sweden.
Rather than wait for the FDA to act, the Black beauty community is taking action. The Breast Cancer Prevention Partners (BCPP), Felicia Leatherwood, and Sienna Naturals are leading the “Get The Formaldehyde Out” (GTFO) campaign to educate the public and demand safer, cleaner products.
Why the System Keeps Failing Black Women
Formaldehyde is just one of many chemicals in beauty products that BCPP is actively fighting. The BCPP has pushed for many major consumer and beauty brands to remove toxic ingredients and to actively disclose chemicals.
“Holding leadership accountable is essential,” explains Astrid Williams, DrPH, MPH, Environmental Justice Program Manager at Black Women for Wellness. “Public health exists to protect people, and when authority and regulation are lacking, it creates harm for society as a whole.”
For BCPP, formaldehyde is a focal point for public education and policy. This Black History Month, the organization launched the GTFO campaign on February 14.
“The GTFO campaign exists because this chemical has been allowed to remain on the market for far too long,” says Williams. “Deadlines to ban it have been missed, and during that time, people’s health continues to be compromised. The science is clear, and continued inaction is unacceptable.”
Black Beauty is a Public Health Concern
California, Colorado, Minnesota, and Washington have also stepped in to protect their residents, but at the national level, the U.S. has failed to ban virtually any harmful chemicals. The EU has banned more than 2,400 linked to cancer, birth defects and reproductive harm in chemicals in cosmetics, compared with just 15 in the U.S. This is not just an oversight, this is a public health crisis.
Black women are specifically vulnerable to these chemicals because we use more beauty products per capita than any other demographic: over $7.5 billion spent annually and nine times more on hair products than the average U.S. consumer. Many of us start this exposure young, with little girls getting relaxers as early as four.
“I had seen in my own community that Black girls were developing breasts at age five,” says Jasmine A. McDonald, PhD, Associate Professor of Epidemiology at Columbia University. “Girls were developing periods at younger ages, and it’s much worse for Black women than any other group.”
Early puberty is linked to endocrine chemicals which cause children to age faster and increase lifetime risks of breast and hormone-related cancers.
Low Dose is a Dangerous Myth in a Lifetime of Exposure
Americans use an estimated 12 personal care products per day—and for some people, closer to 25—resulting in exposure to more than 168 chemicals daily. Scientific studies reveal that Black women have higher levels of these toxins in their bodies than other demographics.
“Eighty percent of beauty products marketed to Black women and little girls contain hazardous chemicals,” says Hannah Diop, co-founder of Sienna Naturals. “We need to shift demand toward cleaner alternatives and innovative ingredients from modern biochemistry labs.”
While most of us are aware of the dangers of putting chemicals in our hair, many assume occasional relaxer use is safe; but evidence shows a lifetime of “low” exposure can still be very harmful. What Diop recognizes at the industry level, Leatherwood has witnessed firsthand on clients’ health over time.
“The biggest misconception is that relaxers do not cause harm,” says Felicia Leatherwood, CEO of Texture Management. “I’ve seen clients who had cancer, stop relaxing, get better, and relapse when returning to chemical treatments. We are not taking responsibility for our hair and health. We need to educate ourselves, check product ingredients, and make informed choices.”
How to Help the Movement to Ban Formaldehyde
You don’t have to be a doctor or celebrity stylist to help ban formaldehyde. Awareness and education is the first step to make real change.
Review safe product lists like the Black Beauty Database, which highlights over a 100 Black-owned brands selling 1500 beauty and personal care products free of BCPP’s Red List of chemicals of concern.
Join BCPP’s virtual Beauty Justice Fireside Chat streaming live from Los Angeles on February 15 at 1:30 p.m. PT via Instagram to learn actionable ways to support the movement.
Our beauty should never come at the expense of our health, and it’s up to us to defend our community from toxic products, one movement at a time.
