Though we still may be some weeks out until summertime, one of the go-to hairstyles for Black women during that season —a.k.a. braids— just might not see a resurgence thanks to a new consumer report. And what it revealed just might come as a shock.
In the newly-released report done by Consumer Reports and corroborated by NBC News, it found that cancer-causing carcinogens were present in at least 10 popular synthetic hair brand products used for braiding hairstyles. Those brands included ones like Sensationnel, Shake-N-Go, and more.
Per the report, all the brands that were tested “contained multiple carcinogens” that could cause diseases like acute myeloid leukemia and other carcinogens like lead, benzene and more. The report also tested the products for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and found that “every sample tested had detectable levels of at least six VOCs” with the highest amount of VOCs in one product reaching up to 14. The most prevalent one was acetone, which can cause respiratory irritation among other symptoms.
Once these findings began to hit the news cycle, many Black women took to social media to sound the alarm and express their disappointment, hurt and anger. One Instagram user Yaneek Page spoke her peace and called attention to the National Institute of Health’s reports sounding the alarm on the same thing back in 2023.
“We have no idea what the long-term affects...will be,” she said. “It’s just important information to know, to share, to be empowered.”
In a separate video, she added:
“I have since spent hours doing research, looking at not just the studies but the limitation of the studies, looking at people’s experiences and even some of the complaints that have been made. There is validity to this data and it is even more concerning where children are involved and where we have a duty of care that is far more substantial than adults.”
Added Alexa Friedman, a senior scientist for the Environmental Working Group, to NBC News: “There is no safe level of exposure to lead or benzene. When possible, exposure to either chemical should be avoided as they are associated with serious health effects.”
In a separate video, others discussed how cosmetic and hair products marketed to Black women often carry the most toxic ingredients. This video echoes that of another recently released analysis from EWG and published on The Guardian in late February that found that “80% of more than 4,000 beauty products marketed toward Black women contain at least one moderately hazardous ingredient – and most contain multiple.”