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Formaldehyde in Brazilian Blowout products
Lab tests show that popular hair straightening treatments marketed as formaldehyde-free contain as much as 10.6 percent formaldehyde.
Thu, Sep 30 2010 at 7:44 PM
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Photo: Saffy/Flickr
Have you ever achieved perfectly straight hair from a Brazilian Blowout treatment — only to end up with a scary bird’s nest on top of your head a few weeks later? Then you know what Siobhan O’Connor and Alexandra Spunt, the authors of “No More Dirty Looks,” went through. The aftereffects of that chemical-intensive treatment was so ugly that the women start their book by sharing the beauty horror story.
Well, now comes a new study that shows exactly why a Brazilian Blowout fries your hair: The stuff is full of formaldehyde!
Formaldehyde in our hair and beauty products is, unfortunately, nothing new. A lot of nail polish still has the toxic chemical in it — and even popular baby shampoo is laced with the suspected carcinogen. Of course Johnson & Johnson and other companies claim their products contain formaldehyde in small “safe” doses, despite the fact that they’ll create formaldehyde-free products for the better-regulated European market. Whether or not you’re willing to take those personal care companies at their word, one thing is certain — the amount of formaldehyde in a Brazilian Blowout is no small amount!
We are talking 4.85 percent formaldehyde content for the Brazilian Blowout Solution — and a whopping 6.3 to 10.6 percent formaldehyde content for the Acai Professional Smoothing Solution — both made by the company Brazilian Blowout. Those figures were calculated by the Oregon Health & Science University’s Center for Research on Occupational Environmental Toxicology, which got lab tests on samples of the products.
And believe it or not, Brazilian Blowout claims its products are formaldehyde-free on the containers.
That’s right. The material safety data sheets for these products list no formaldehyde — despite the fact that the company is required to list any more than 0.1 percent formaldehyde.
Certainly, this is bad news for anyone who has ever decided to indulge in a Brazilian Blowout, but the findings are even scarier for salon workers, since formaldehyde is a suspected carcinogen — and is also known to cause all sorts of shorter-term health problems like eye and skin irritation, chest pain and asthma.
In fact, green salon owners and employees have often cited such health problems as their reason for deciding to open or work at an eco-friendlier salon. Nicole Vann of eco-friendly Evolution Salon in Venice, Calif., for example, says she had to open her own place after getting sick all the time from the chemicals at a Beverly Hills salon where she worked.
The news of high formaldehyde levels in Brazilian Blowout products has environmental groups like Women’s Voices for the Earth pushing harder for the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010, which would close regulatory loopholes and give the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) more power, allowing the agency to require safety tests and product recalls. Find out more about the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010 now, and in the meantime, resist the urge to get a Brazilian Blowout treatment. Paying $150 to $600 of your hard-earned cash to get doused with a suspected carcinogen is a waste of money indeed.
The opinions expressed by MNN Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of MNN.com. While we have reviewed their content to make sure it complies with our Terms and Conditions, MNN is not responsible for the accuracy of any of their information.
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p.s. according to brazilian blowout litigation with Oregon OSHA is over and they were proven safe by FEDERAL OSHA ! California (were BB is located and manufactured) OSHA laws are the same as Federal Osha - if they were truly dangerous beyond allowance they would not still be in business- please remember many put bleach, peroxide, perm solution and many other straightening chemicals on their scalp and not all have been tested....
natural is the operative word here. I can assure you that brazilian blowout does not extract their formaldehyde from naturally occurring foods like apples and shitake mushrooms.
FOODS KNOWN to contain naturally occurring FORMALDEHYDE:
Apple 6.3 -22.3 mg/kg
Shiitake Mushroom (dried) 100 - 406 mg/kg
Crustacean 1 - 98 mg/kg
Instant Coffee 10-16mg/kg
So, who's ZOOMING who?
I hate my curling hair and never thought that I could wash it at home go to the beach or to the pool without run to the hair stylist!! For the first time in my lifein about 20 years I have been enjoying my life after the blowout!!
Thanks blowout!!
Health Canada - Canada's federal public health body - has tested BB and found formeldehyde levels of 12%. They recommend stylists stop using it immediately.
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/10/07/con-brazilian-solution.html
John, you expect anyone to feel assured that the BB company reports its own testing shows their own product is safe? As of this date, OSHA has not withdrawn it's claim and the Canadian govt has ordered the product banned from salons. What are you, a shill for the company?
BB tested the product in its own labs and found it safe you say? Phew! what a relief. There's no way BB would lie to us, is there? Until they release a copy of the test results or Ha list of ingredients, there is no reason to trust this announcement.
I have been doing the Brazilian Blowout in my salon for awhile now..and yes everytime I do one I feel "out of it" for about 2hrs or more. It is bad for us. Bottom line. Look and the smoke coming off the hair...and we are just breathing it in. Obviously they are denying it because the want OUR money. Thats ALL they care about. I mean why arent the ingredients listed on the bottle? And why wouldnt they tell me the ingredients when I went to the training. Dont do it..and tell your freinds.
I have been wanting to do this for a very long time but am scared to death because of these mixed reviews that I hear...
I have somewhat long/very curly hair that takes me an hour to blow dry and flatiron. I can NEVER do it in the summer nor in humid weather. I LOVE my hair straight and absolutely HATE my curly hair but am deathly afraid of it falling out or becoming worse when the chemicals wear off... HELP!
i have been doing the brazilian blowout for over a year now. Some people don't even notice smell or get tears and some people do. I always keep a door open i avoid the smoke. Results are amazing, the product doesnt touch your scalp and its rinsed before you go home. make your appointment and love your hair
Did you trust the tobacco companies when they told us cigarettes were safe all those years?
Don't believe what your company rep tells you. They have a vested interest in keeping you happy. The samples were taken from 3 different salons, and each salon provided packing slips to verify that the product was shipped from a BB supplier.
http://newyorkcity.injuryboard.com/workplace-injuries/does-the-popular-b...
What are the long term effects of having this treatment break down close to your face over 3 months? Being released into your air whenever you shower, or blow dry or use a flat iron? Sleeping on a pillow that your formaldehyde straightened hair has been resting on?
This is nothing more than an ad for a ventilation system. Just a sample of how lies are spread on the internet for monetary gain. Brazilian blowout is safe and the company will prove it. Get ready for the lawsuits for people who are spreading the wrong info.
You should call Brazilian Blowout and ask for the ingredients in their products. I did and they refused to tell me. Now, why would I assume this product is 100% safe if the manufacturer can't tell me what's in it?
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