Developing Uterine Cancer From Chemical Hair Straightening Products

Women with a history of frequently using chemical hair straightening products are more than twice as likely to develop uterine cancer as non-users. Though women of color have historically experienced uterine cancer at elevated rates, it took decades for anyone to understand the issue had less to do with race than it did with hair care products. Cosmetic brands marketing hair relaxers never warned women these kits contained cancer-causing ingredients. Instead, researchers had to examine chemical hair straighteners and instances of uterine cancer to begin to see patterns they could not ignore.

Research on Hair Relaxer Uterine Health Risks

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), a division of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), performed a study linking hair relaxers to uterine cancer. The results showed 1.64% of women who never used hair straighteners would go on to develop uterine cancer by the age of 70. But women who frequently—defined as more than four times in a previous year—used chemical hair straighteners experienced a 4.05% chance of developing uterine cancer. That the risk of contracting a relatively rare disease almost doubles after using hair relaxers shows the strong impact these chemicals make on human health.

Hidden Cancer-Causing Chemicals in Hair Relaxers

Cosmetic brands, including hair relaxer manufacturers, are notorious for applying misleading ingredient labels to potentially hazardous products. The companies use innocuous terms like ‘fragrance’ or ‘preservative’ instead of ‘phthalates’ and ‘parabens,’ which might have tipped off users to the product’s dangerous nature. With a noxious ingredient list eclipsed by beneficial terms like ‘nourishing,’ ‘soft,’ and ‘organic,’ no one assumed hair relaxers could cause cancer.

Manufacturers’ labels concealed these three harmful ingredients in hair relaxers:

• Phthalates: These compounds labeled as ‘perfume’ or ‘fragrance’ are known to cause health risks, including cancer.
• Parabens: This group of preservative chemicals has shown endocrine disruption capabilities.
• Formaldehyde: Even low-level exposure causes health issues. The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies formaldehyde as a human carcinogen.

Effects of Hair Relaxers’ Mechanism of Action

Cancer often develops when a hormonal imbalance or other factor causes cells to mutate and multiply, forming a mass. Exposure to phthalates, parabens, and formaldehyde in chemical hair straightening products is believed to instigate epigenetic changes that cause reproductive diseases and cancer.

The answer to how chemical hair straightening products could cause cancer is easier to understand after considering how the product works. Achieving a sleek hairdo requires potent toxins and time. When the relaxer is applied to curly roots and left on long enough, the chemicals break down hair proteins and alter the fiber structure into a different configuration—curly hair becomes straight. Harsh chemicals cause burns and lesions on the scalp and the compromised skin allows toxins to be absorbed into the bloodstream, causing adverse reactions in the body.

The Cost of Straight Hair

Many women  filing hair relaxer lawsuits were diagnosed with uterine cancer before age 30—decades earlier than average. Treating cancer can require a hysterectomy, and for a young woman who hasn’t yet reached menopause, this may prematurely end her childbearing years.

Sadly, many women are discovering too late what their straight locks cost them. Devastating consequences—including being unable to start a family and even death from cancer—have inspired these women to file lawsuits against the manufacturers of hair relaxers to hold them accountable.