Perms….. Safe or Unsafe?

Relaxer- A relaxer is a chemical treatment designed to permanently alter the hair’s natural texture into a straightened state. A lye-based relaxer contains the active ingredient sodium hydroxide ( a chemical also found in drain cleaner). A no-lye relaxer contains potassium hydroxide or calcium hydroxide. Relaxers straighten curly hair by breaking down the bonds in the hair shaft.

Many women don’t take notice to how detrimental relaxers and perms are to their health. I understand people have chosen to use relaxers for the convenience of having straighter more manageable hair. I’m not sure if they know the effects of maintaining relaxed hair. In this day and age relaxers have become the norm and people who don’t use relaxers or other forms of straighteners are looked at as unprofessional and unkempt. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Women that maintain natural curls, kinks, and coils wash their hair more frequently than women with relaxed hair (not a fact just an opinion). Natural women also take much pride in their hair. I understand that women with relaxers also take pride in their hair, but the one thing that I never understood is, “Why would you continue to use something that you know has the power to take away the very thing you find pride in having?”             picture by: allthingsfollicles.blogspot.com

If you think about it, there are too many risk involved when using chemical straighteners. The bigger problem is relaxers and perms have become so normalized that people have stopped caring about whats important i.e. the dangerous chemicals and have decided the end result is well worth the risk. Most of us seem not to understand that everything toxic we expose ourselves to is helping to invite sickness into our body. Take for example the study in The American Journal of Epidemiology and the popular Boston University paper showing Relaxers link to fibroid tumors in women and accelerated puberty in young girls. This study followed 23,000 premenopasual women ranging in races of Hispanic, African American, African Caribbean, and White New York girls . During this study which was conducted from 1997 to 2009 they found that African American girls were more likely to start going through puberty at a younger age than Hispanic, African Caribbean, and White New York girls. I don’t believe this was a coincidence. I know it has everything to do with things we consume and put on our bodies to alter them.

By doing away with perms, relaxers, texturizers, and all other harmful chemical processes we take just a little more of a hold to our health. If your still not convinced, please look up the chemicals in one of theses products and you will begin to understand why they are not good for you internally or externally. Keep in mind what ever is on the skin has the capability to be absorbed. That means if you are putting harmful chemicals on your skin or your around toxic chemicals daily they can be absorbed and can cause damage to you internally.

All information provided by: blackhair.com, atlantanaturalhair.com, madamnoire.com, and mtholyok.edu, photo by: http://facesofony.com/fab-look-perfect-relaxed-hair-extensions-onyc-hair-light-perm/