Chemical Hair-Straightening Linked To Uterine Cancer, Study Warns Black Women

"Frequent use of chemical hair-straightening products could put women at a higher risk of developing uterine cancer than those who do not use such products, a major study by the National Institutes of Health found.

Although the study did not find that the relationship between straightener and uterine cancer differed by race, it warned that the impacts may be greater for Black women because of a higher prevalence of use.

The study tracked 33,497 women in the United States between the ages of 35 and 74 as they used hair dyes, straighteners, relaxers or pressing products for, on average, over a decade. About 60 percent of the participants self-identified as Black women in the study, which was published in the peer-reviewed Journal of the National Cancer Institute on Monday — with 378 uterine cancer cases diagnosed over that time."

Adela Suliman reports for the Washington Post October 18, 2022.

 

Source: Washington Post, 10/19/2022