Hair over Health??? The Dangers of Brazilian Keratin Treatment

[softblackcotton]

Good evening Fellow LHCFers!

There have been many threads in LHCF and other hair forums posted about the wondrous and amazing results of Brazilian Keratin Treatment aka BKT, and after reading so many good things about it I know many ladies including myself have been considering trying BKT to ease the management process of our natural/transitioning hair. However, I would just like to warn the ladies who are considering BKT to do your research first!

The Good: BKT can straighten, strengthen, and smooth the curliest curls. It make your hair shiny, bouncy, virtually break-free, and a dream to manage. All this without permanently changing the texture of your hair like a relaxer! rolleyes: given that you haven't suffered heat damage in the process).

The Bad: According to some of the articles I have been reading; there are many overwhelming hazards and disadvantages that come along with the benefits.. The main hazard concern about BKT is that it contains formaldehyde (yes, the same stuff they use to embalm dead bodies and biology lab frogs). Formaldehyde is a proven carcinogenic (it causes cancer) and all the brands that have been tested contain unsafe amounts of formaldehyde (even the brands claiming low or alternatives).

The Ugly: It is highly recommended that during a BKT treatment, the hair stylist and their clients wear gas masks in a heavy ventilated area.erplexed The fumes released during the treatment are from formaldehyde. The fumes not only effect the client and the hair stylist, but also the people in close proximity. Even after treatment the formaldehyde on the hair slowly breaks down and is consistently released in small amounts in the air you breath, your clothing, your pillow, car head rest, when you brush, comb, etc. It can cause irritation to people with pre-existing conditions such as asthma, sinus problems, and/or allergies. Getting the process over the long-term may have major health effects and it is risky. Many salons in NYC have discontinued the use of BKT to protect employees/clients until safer alternatives are found.

BKT has recently gained popularity in the USA and thus there has not been much done to regulate it by the FDA. However, as long as there is money to be made The government won't regulate much of anything especially when it means some of that is $$$ lining their pockets. Other than the health risks; BKT is very, very expensive from $150-600 for a single treatment in most salons; not being able to touch/wet/put anything on hair for 4 days while it "sets";the process includes the extremely high use of heat 450 degrees at least!!! I'm not really trying to discourage anybody who has their heart set to do BKT, however, I just want to help you be inform and encourage you to do your own research. Here are some useful links to some articles about BKT below:

http://www.short-hair-style.com/keratin-hair-treatment.html

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/10/26/earlyshow/health/main3414868.shtml

http://stylebell.wordpress.com/2008/02/20/brazilian-keratin-treatment-faq/

http://nymag.com/news/intelligencer/39331/

 

[Qualitee]

Thanks for posting. Putting on full PPE just to straighten your hair? That's ridiculous

 

[br0wney3z]

I guess I'll be staying away from it then. Not about to go natural to put even worse stuff in my hair than a regular relaxer. Thanks for the info

 

[Lexib]

Thanks so much for the heads up! Will definitely be researching this more before diving in.

 

[Chaosbutterfly]

Just putting it out there, that many ladies have used BKT with beautiful results and without damage to their own health or hair.

Same as with relaxers, color, or using heat to straighten natural hair, I think most people who run into issues with BKT will do so because of user error. Either they didn't follow the instructions (imagine that), they messed up somewhere in the procedure, they went to someone who didn't know what they were doing, they didn't take precautions for the fumes (which is basically like relaxing without basing the scalp - pretty dumb)....there are tons of reasons BKT could go wrong, and none of them having anything to do with the product itself.

If you know what you are doing or go to someone who does, take the necessary precautions, and do it carefully and thoughtfully, you shouldn't run into issues, unless your hair just doesn't like BKT.

Just wanting to provide another perspective on the issue.

 

[ceebee3]

I guess I'll be staying away from it then. Not about to go natural to put even worse stuff in my hair than a regular relaxer. Thanks for the info

It's good to research anything before trying it out. I think most of the ladies that BKT here have done a lot of research. I remember people posting links about the dangers before.

It would be great if everyone researched relaxers or any other types of treatments the same way.

It's always good to make an informed decision.

 

[Sasha299]

Formaldehyde is nothing new in beauty products If you read all products you use around the house you will find that they contain formaldehyde or formaldehyde creating products. Used with caution its not a biggie

Formaldehyde is naturally produced in very small amounts in our bodies as a part of our normal, everyday metabolism and causes us no harm. It can also be found in the air that we breathe at home and at work, in the food we eat, and in some products that we put on our skin. A major source of formaldehyde that we breathe everyday is found in smog in the lower atmosphere. Automobile exhaust from cars without catalytic converters or those using oxygenated gasoline also contain formaldehyde. At home, formaldehyde is produced by cigarettes and other tobacco products, gas cookers, and open fireplaces. It is also used as a preservative in some foods, such as some types of Italian cheeses, dried foods, and fish. Formaldehyde is found in many products used every day around the house, such as antiseptics, medicines, cosmetics, dish-washing liquids, fabric softeners, shoe-care agents, carpet cleaners, glues and adhesives, lacquers, paper, plastics, and some types of wood products. Some people are exposed to higher levels of formaldehyde if they live in a new mobile home, as formaldehyde is given off as a gas from the manufactured wood products used in these homes... There is usually more formaldehyde present indoors than outdoors. Formaldehyde is released to the air from many home products and you may breath in formaldehyde while using these products. Latex paint, fingernail hardener, and fingernail polish release a large amount of formaldehyde to the air. Plywood and particle board, as well as furniture and cabinets made from them, fiberglass products, new carpets, decorative laminates, and some permanent press fabrics give off a moderate amount of formaldehyde. Some paper products, such as grocery bags and paper towels, give off small amounts of formaldehyde. Because these products contain formaldehyde, you may also be exposed on the skin by touching or coming in direct contact with them. You may also be exposed to small amounts of formaldehyde in the food you eat. You are not likely to be exposed to formaldehyde in the water you drink because it does not last a long time in water.

Even the Johnson&Johnson baby products that we grew up with contains formaldehyde.


Hair relaxers have more in common with Draino than we realize. Also, "hair relaxer ingredients are only partly monitored by the Food and Drug Administration: manufacturers need not list flavorings, fragrances, and ingredients that are trade secrets" (http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/16/5/1035.full)

documented case of adverse reaction to Hair relaxers - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/...med_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=1

 

[tada1]

Thank you so much for posting this. I think that it's bad enough that there's formaldehyde in so many products already. I can't justify intentionally exposing myself to more of it.

If this gas is a carcinogen, I'll rather learn to work with my hair than risk my life. wow. thank you so much!

 

[naturalmanenyc]

Every few months this same information about BKT is posted. I'm not sure what prompts it?

I am pretty sure that this info is also already in the very long BKT thread.

 

[imaccami]

Thanks OP. Here's what I found about formaldehyde.


From the National Cancer Institute:

The results showed an increased risk of death due to leukemia, particularly myeloid leukemia, among workers exposed to formaldehyde. This risk was associated with increasing peak and average levels of exposure, as well as with the duration of exposure, but it was not associated with cumulative exposure. An additional 10 years of data on the same workers were used in a follow-up study published in 2009 (5). This analysis continued to show a possible link between formaldehyde exposure and cancers of the hematopoietic and lymphatic systems, particularly myeloid leukemia.

Several NCI surveys of professionals who are potentially exposed to formaldehyde in their work, such as anatomists and embalmers, have suggested that these individuals are at an increased risk of leukemia and brain cancer compared with the general population.

An NCI case-control study among funeral industry workers that characterized exposure to formaldehyde also found an association between increasing formaldehyde exposure and mortality from myeloid leukemia (3). For this study, carried out among funeral industry workers who had died between 1960 and 1986, researchers compared those who had died from hematopoietic and lymphatic cancers and brain tumors with those who died from other causes

This analysis showed that those who had performed the most embalming and those with the highest estimated formaldehyde exposure had the greatest risk of myeloid leukemia.

General Population's exposure to Formaldehyde:

One source of formaldehyde exposure in the air is automobile tailpipe emissions.
During the 1970s, urea-formaldehyde foam insulation (UFFI) was used in many homes. However, few homes are now insulated with UFFI. Homes in which UFFI was installed many years ago are not likely to have high formaldehyde levels now. Pressed-wood products containing formaldehyde resins are often a significant source of formaldehyde in homes. Other potential indoor sources of formaldehyde include cigarette smoke and the use of unvented fuel-burning appliances, such as gas stoves, wood-burning stoves, and kerosene heaters.

Industrial workers who produce formaldehyde or formaldehyde-containing products, laboratory technicians, certain health care professionals, and mortuary employees may be exposed to higher levels of formaldehyde than the general public. Exposure occurs primarily by inhaling formaldehyde gas or vapor from the air or by absorbing liquids containing formaldehyde through the skin.

 

[julzinha]

I heard brands like QOD Gold are safe and not hazardous like many of the other BKT brands

 

[LovelyNaps26]

I got excited when i learned about BKT, thinking that i might try it out when i hit my hair goal (bsl) in 1 1/2 to 2 years. After reading more about it, however, I figured it'd be a waste to spend hard work and effort on my healthy hair care journey just to do something that can negatively affect my hair. To each his own, but i think the press and curl will have to suffice until the products are COMPLETELY free of formaldehyde.

with that let me change my siggy since apparently there are new rules i've been sleeping on

 

[msbettyboop]

I pretty much lost interest in BKT after I heard the word formaldehyde. I have no desire to put what is used to embalm bodies on my head!!!