The new link between chemical hair straighteners and risk of uterine cancer in Black women like me

I begged my ma for 2 things 1 Christmas play erstwhile I was 9 years old: a Barbie doll location and a "perm" — the colloquial word we utilized for relaxers. We did not recognize past that determination was a major difference betwixt the two.

Though hesitant astatine first, arsenic a ma with 4 daughters — I'm the youngest — she knew my pleading wouldn't halt until my hairsbreadth looked similar 1 of the girls connected the 'Just For Me' box.

I recovered retired lone precocious that those models didn't really person the relaxed hairsbreadth themselves.

Before that Christmas interruption was over, what erstwhile was a elephantine afro was bone-straight and down the magnitude of my backmost similar I'd ne'er seen it before.

My hairsbreadth is heavy and coarse, truthful astatine the time, I assumed the chemic straightening pick had to enactment successful my hairsbreadth for a longer magnitude of clip to truly get the kinks and curls straighter.

So erstwhile my ma asked if my scalp was burning — yes, it was! — I pushed done and held retired conscionable a small spot longer to marque definite it would truly work.

Even astatine that young age, I thought quality was symptom and that having consecutive hairsbreadth was much socially acceptable — though nary 1 successful my household ever told maine that.

That content was reaffirmed for maine that Monday erstwhile I walked into schoolhouse and radical responded good to the magnitude and straightness of my hair.

I got relaxers beauteous regularly for the adjacent six oregon 7 years aft that.

My mom, myself, our friends and household had ne'er fixed immoderate thought to however the exertion of these chemicals connected our hairsbreadth and scalp mightiness beryllium affecting our carnal health.

And we wouldn't cognize until implicit a decennary aft my archetypal relaxer and implicit a period aft chemic straightening was introduced to the Black assemblage successful the aboriginal 1900s.

On Oct. 17, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) published findings of the Sister Study, including information from implicit 33,000 women who were tracked for astir 11 years.

The extremity was to pinpoint hazard factors for bosom crab and different wellness conditions, and researchers discovered thing alarming.

Within that clip frame, 378 women were diagnosed with uterine cancer, and those who utilized hairsbreadth straighteners implicit 4 times successful the erstwhile twelvemonth "were much than doubly arsenic apt to spell connected to make uterine crab compared to those who did not usage the products."

Around 60% of the women who reported utilizing hairsbreadth straightening products self-identified arsenic Black, the press release states.

"Because Black women usage hairsbreadth straightening oregon relaxer products much often and thin to initiate usage astatine earlier ages than different races and ethnicities, these findings whitethorn beryllium adjacent much applicable for them," said Che-Jung Chang, an writer connected the survey and a probe chap successful the NIEHS Epidemiology Branch successful the property release.

Though the survey didn't see circumstantial brands, determination are definite chemicals that whitethorn beryllium contributing to the accrued uterine crab hazard including:

• Parabens
• Bisphenol A
• Metals
• Formaldehyde

For different chemical-based hairsbreadth products similar highlights, bleach, hairsbreadth dyes and perms, researchers didn't find associations with uterine cancer.

Thankfully, women successful my beingness similar my older sister and champion friend, who defied the 'straight hair' standard, showed maine what embracing my earthy hairsbreadth could look like.

I began my earthy hairsbreadth travel astatine 16, and I haven't relaxed my hairsbreadth since.

Still, I wonderment what these findings volition mean for me, my loved ones and different Black women successful the future.

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