Exposures in Black PCP
Found in the health and beauty sections of your local department stores, personal care products are items used to promote personal hygiene and enhance appearance. However, these personal care products also serve as a significant source of EDC exposure, as many products contain chemicals such as parabens and phthalates which have been shown to disrupt the endocrine system to impact reproductive health and pregnancy, as you can read about HERE. Exposure to EDCs may occur through the skin if products are applied topically, and also through inhalation or ingestion, with higher frequency of personal care product usage associated with higher concentrations of chemicals within the body as measured by samples from urine and breast milk (1). While the issue of EDC exposure is a growing issue for all women, its effects are disproportionately affecting a particular group—Black women.
Image: Dark and Lovely: Corrective Leave-In Conditioner (13)
Image: ORS Olive Oil Max Moisture Conditioning and Softening Bundle (14)
Image: ORS Olive Oil Built-In Protection Hair Relaxer (15)
Beauty Standards + Industry
The beauty industry thrives off of the dollar of Black women. Black women spend $7.5 billion on beauty products each year and spend nearly nine times more on ethnic hair and beauty products than any other demographic (2). Evidently, hair care and cosmetic use plays a large role in the lifestyle of Black women, but unfortunately comes with high risks. Styling hair and cosmetic use is integral to a Black woman's being. Hair is a part of their identity, with visits to the beauty shop, getting braids done, or morning wash days being a part of their livelihood. The value of hair has been a part of Black culture throughout history, explaining the significant investment into hair care products. Unfortunately, this comes with potential negative effects because of the toxic ingredients most of them contain.
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While hair care is important to Black women, the beauty standards placed on women exacerbate issues of EDC exposure and increase pressure to invest in certain hair products. Eurocentric beauty standards Black women have felt the weight and pressure to assimilate to whether it be to adhere to beauty standards or maintain “professionalism” at work. Circumstances like these show how the United States in particular has made, and continues to make, Eurocentric beauty standards the standard. Straight hair, lighter skin—features that are not natural to Black women. As a result, Black women’s dollars often go to products that make them fit closer to these non-natural standards, such as hair relaxers, hair oils, hair lotions, leave-in conditioners, and pressing combs. Many of these products are leave-in products that are not washed out for long periods of time, which allows for chemicals to accumulate on the scalp, resulting in greater EDC exposure (3) Combined with the significantly larger volume of hair products used by Black women in comparison to other groups (4), it is evident that racial differences in personal care product usage contribute to disparities in EDC exposures and health outcomes, making it all the more important to raise awareness of the issue and dismantle beauty standards governing society today.
Health Implications for Black Women
Now, how does this impact health outcomes within the community?​
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Well, research has found a positive association between bisphenol A (BPA) and ovarian dysfunction, particularly polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). PCOS is characterized as a hormone disorder of the ovaries that results in irregular periods, increased androgen levels, and polycystic ovaries, learn more about that HERE (5). The study found a positive correlation between BPA and androgen concentrations, including free testosterone, total testosterone, and androstenedione. Hyperandrogenism, being a strong indicator of PCOS, results in various pregnancy experience differences that can impact the health of the mother and the child. For pregnant individuals with PCOS, there is an increased association with preeclampsia, preterm birth, and gestational diabetes for pregnant individuals (6). Children born from individuals with PCOS have an increased risk of being larger for gestational age, experiencing meconium aspiration, and having a lower Apgar score which is used to determine the health of a baby after birth (6). About 5 million women in the United States are impacted by PCOS, but Black women in particular are disproportionately impacted by the disorder (7).
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More research examining uterine disorders found that environmental contaminants, like di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and its metabolite, mono-ethylhexyl phthalate (MEHP), are linked to the pathogenesis of endometriosis. They found that DEHP/MEHP concentrations were significantly higher in women with endometriosis (8). A similar review examining uterine leiomyoma, also known as fibroids, found that exposure to DEHP, BPA, and diethylstilbestrol was associated with an increased risk of developing this condition characterized by growths in the uterus (9). A disparity still lies within these disorders, with Black women being three times more likely than their White counterparts to develop uterine fibroids (10) and endometriosis being known as the leading cause of infertility for Black women (11). The linkage between EDC exposures in Black hair products and the present racial disparity we see in reproductive health outcomes needs to be further analyzed and understood to mitigate the differences prevalent.
The CROWN Act
One step in the right direction is the passage of the CROWN act, which inhibits companies from discriminating against employees on the basis of hair style or texture (12). Given that this act was passed just 4 years ago in 2019, it is clear we still have a long way to go in making Black women feel accepted, protected, and beautiful in their natural state. Doing this will not only give Black women and many other communities of color the treatment they deserve, but they may turn to products less – particularly products that often contain toxic chemicals and contain these EDCs that can potentially lead to harmful health outcomes and pregnancy experiences. With how integral product use is in the Black community, it is also our responsibility to increase regulation in these products to give women safer alternatives.
Learn more about the CROWN Act, its impact, and how you can support it, HERE.