Are Relaxers Affecting Your Health?!

Whether or not a Relaxer is harmful to your health- has been the topic of debate for years. With all the contradicting evidence its hard to pin point whether or not relaxers are indeed harmful to your health. Chemical relaxers or (Sodium Hydroxide) are a goldmine for the beauty industry, they are not regulated by the FDA, and a complete list of their ingredients is not mandatory, therefore making it unclear on what types of chemicals they contain. So we have no way of knowing how much sodium hydroxide or any other chemicals for that matter we are being exposed to when applying the product to our hair.  After doing some research here is what I have found;

According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) During the use of a  Relaxer only a small amount is believed to be absorbed into the system through the skin.While absorption through the skin is minimal, the concern is the inhalation of fumes during the process.The fumes from the process could be harmful to unborn babies during pregnancy.

According to the latest report published in the American Journal of Epidemiology,scientist from Boston University followed more than 23,580 pre menopausal Black women from 1997 to 2009 and discovered that the women suffered scalp lesions and burn from using hair relaxers. The chemical seeped through their bodied and into their urine and as a result acquired Uterine Leiomyomata also known as uterine fibroid, which are leading indication for hysterectomy in the
United States.
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So far, there is only an association rather than a cause and effect relationship between relaxers, fibroid tumors.
Fibroid Facts
Fibroids are tumors that grow in the uterus. They are benign, which means they are not cancerous, and are made up of muscle fibers. Fibroids can be as small as a pea and can grow as large as a melon. It is estimated that 20-50% of women have, or will have, fibroids at some time.