Ladies, I get it: there has been centuries of Eurocentric influence and pressure from within and without to conform to the mainstream ‘standard of beauty’ at any cost. Some of us have made it a family tradition to relax one another’s hair and to tame the presence of the kink to get easier hairstyling and even if we no longer like the practice, many do it out of habit because changing, they believe, is too much effort and not woth the trouble to contemplate.

But there’s a price that we pay at every level when we decide to ‘go along to get along,’ and when African-American women choose to apply relaxers to the hair, the results are anything but attractive.

According to hair care expert Pamela Ferrell, the toxic chemical cocktail has acknowledged negative effects: the permanent curl, for example, “thioglycolates are toxic and may cause skin irritation, and absorption  into the bloodstream, leading to low blood sugar. Among thioglycolate-related injuries recently reported to the FDA were hair damage, swelling of the legs and feet, eye irritation, rash on ears, neck, scalp, and swelling of the eyelids.” And if the chemicals are left in place for too long, burns can occru and hardened scar tissue closes the hair follicles, leading to baldness.

The same portion of the book quotes Barbara Justice, M.D., as emphatically stating that “an increasing volume of research points to the modern explosion of malignancy and other immune dysfunction diseases (rheumatory arthritis, multiple sclerosis, sarcoidosis) caused by the release of free radicals into our(abnormal molecules that cause damage to the normally orderly process of the body’s immune maintenance…..therefore, a case can be made that the additional load of free radicals induced by the use of toxic hair chemicals contribute to immune depression and consequently the development of ubiquiors diseases and cancers.”

More recently, a 2010 study concluded that not only is there a risk of permanent baldness, the unborn may be at risk:

“Dermatologist Nhlanhla Khumalo, who works at the university and at Groote Schuur. Khumalo published her research in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology last month. She wrote that “the link between relaxers and hair loss was becoming  clearer.”  The highest risk of hair loss happens when hairstyles and  braids are done on relaxed hair.

Based on a study of school girls and young women in Langa, Cape Town,  Khumalo’s research found that up to 70percent of schoolgirls and adults  were using hair relaxers to straighten their hair.

“For black African women, the most worrying cause of hair loss is  traction alopecia (TA) – the loss of hair which is most common in the  hairline as a result of pulling hair into a tight pony tail, braids and  weaves,” she said.

The highest risk occurs when the hairstyles are done on relaxed hair which is already soft, she said.

Hair relaxers change the level of cystine – a protein responsible for strengthening the hair.

“The end result is that the hair is fragile and brittle compared to the original unrelaxed hair,” Khumalo said.

She said adding hairstyles like braids and extensions onto the hair  puts pressure on the relaxed hair, which results in hair breaking or  falling out.

Lucy Mibey, hairdresser and owner of Braids Sensation Hair and Beauty  Salon in Mowbray, Cape Town, said “the problem is that the majority of  African black people have no proper knowledge and education about hair  grooming.”

So is that quick and convenient box of ‘Just For Me’ really worth years of poor health and permanent hair loss? Do you want ‘bone straight’ hair so much that you’re willing to risk your health as you do bad hair imitations of others? Is it really too much to ask that you spend an hour moisturizing and styling a child’s hair (or finding someone who can) and teaching them that it’s pretty and presentable the way God created it?

Let’s create a positive example of self-acceptance and  learn to embrace what we have: I’ve been natural for 20 years and let me tell you, there were no hair blogs and youtube channels to guide me through the maze of styles and products like there are today. After wearing locks for 6 years (and having to drop-kick that stylist), I decided to go back to looser looks and, fortunately, found a local stylist who has helped me to maintain it. I’ll post favored products and her information soon, but in the meantime, use these links for future reading and RESOLVE TO ROCK YOUR NATURAL LADIES, THE SOONER THE BETTER!!!

http://www.livestrong.com/article/122225-side-effects-lye-hair-relaxers/

http://www.epa.gov/region9/healthy-hair/pdfs/p2-african-american-salons.pdf

http://www.thenaturalhavenbloom.com/2009/06/reader-questions-week-relaxers.html

http://www.sistersofthefaith.com/beauty/the-irreversible-damage-of-chemical-relaxers/