What You Need to Know About Chemical Hair Relaxers: Endocrine Disruption Explained

What Is Endocrine Disruption?

The endocrine system is your body’s hormone headquarters. It controls everything from puberty and fertility to mood and metabolism. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are harmful substances that can interfere with this system. They mimic or block natural hormones, sending the body’s delicate balance into chaos.

Chemical relaxers often contain several EDCs, including:

• Phthalates – Known to mimic estrogen and linked to reproductive problems.

• Parabens – Preservatives that disrupt hormones and have been found in breast tissue.

• Formaldehyde – A toxic chemical and known carcinogen.

• Fragrance compounds – Often contain undisclosed EDCs hidden under “fragrance” on labels.

When applied to the scalp—especially on broken skin or burns (which many of us have experienced after a relaxer)—these chemicals can enter the bloodstream and start affecting our hormones.

Why This Harms Our Girls

Young Black girls are especially vulnerable. Their bodies are still growing, their hormones still developing, and their immune systems still learning. Exposure to EDCs during this sensitive stage of life can cause lasting damage.

1. Early Puberty

Studies have linked chemical relaxers to earlier onset of puberty, sometimes before age 8. This isn’t just a physical change—it impacts a girl’s mental health, emotional wellbeing, and increases risk for future diseases like breast and uterine cancer.

2. Reproductive Harm

EDCs have been shown to disrupt ovarian development and the menstrual cycle. That means painful periods, hormone imbalances, and an increased risk for fertility challenges down the road.

3. Cancer Risk

Black women are already more likely to be diagnosed with aggressive forms of uterine and breast cancer. Recent studies have found a direct link between frequent use of hair relaxers and a higher risk of these diseases.

4. Thyroid and Weight Issues

Hormones also control metabolism. Disruption can lead to thyroid problems, weight gain, fatigue, and mood swings—all symptoms many of us know too well and often go untreated or misdiagnosed.

A System That Failed Us

Let’s be honest—this isn’t just about beauty. This is about the messaging that told us our natural hair wasn’t "good enough." It’s about companies putting harmful chemicals in products marketed directly to us, without ever warning us about the risks. It’s about a health system that’s been slow to care when Black women are the ones most affected.

But we’re not powerless. We can demand better—for ourselves and for the little girls watching us.

Protect Our Daughters

We must break the cycle. We must protect the next generation of Black girls from being exposed to harmful chemicals in the name of beauty. That starts with:

• Saying no to chemical relaxers, especially for children.

• Learning to read labels and choose safer, natural alternatives.

• Teaching our girls that their hair is already beautiful—in its kinks, coils, and curls.

• Supporting clean beauty brands that prioritize our health.

And most importantly, taking action. Please sign the petition to ban hair relaxers for children here.

Every signature helps push for federal regulation, transparency, and accountability from companies who profit while our bloodlines are at stake. Let’s demand that our daughters grow up in a world where their health isn’t compromised by the products on store shelves.

Your Crowning Glory

We don’t need chemicals to be beautiful. We don’t need to compromise our health to be accepted. The hair that grows from our heads is as God intended. The crown was given to us as-is—and protecting it means protecting ourselves and our daughters.

“And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good..." - Genesis 1:31