We know that women are more exposed to chemicals in personal care products, and we also know that women of color are at greater risk than women of other demographics.
Researchers tested urine samples from black and Hispanic hairdressers in the United States and compared them to samples from women of color working office jobs.
Hairdressers of color are suspected of having greater chemical exposure than stylists of other demographics due to the products and services used in salons that primarily serve populations of color.
Unlike traditional studies, the researchers not only measured for expected chemicals found in people working with hair products, they looked for other compounds that had not been previously investigated.
Hairdressers of color exposed to ‘concerning’ mix of unknown chemicals
Traditional methods only look for chemicals we might expect to be present, but these products contain lots of different chemicals, and not all of them are known. They wanted to open up the lens and find possible other chemicals that hairdressers could have come into contact with so that we can inform future regulations on these chemicals.
Compared to women who worked in offices, hairstylists had higher levels of chemicals associated with salon treatments — hair relaxers, conditioners, dyes and fragrances — but also many other substances that the researchers could not identify.
There are over 700,000 hairdressers in the United States, of which over 90% are estimated to be female, and 30% are black or Hispanic/Latina. In this predominantly female workforce, with many women of reproductive age, exposure can pose not only women’s health issues, but children’s health issues as well.
The findings suggest that more studies are important to better understand what hairdressers are exposed to at work and to determine how best to reduce these exposures and attempt to reduce any health disparities.
Source: Eurekalert
