A study at the [b]University of Cape Town[/b], led by Prof Nonhlanhla Khumalo, found that most commercial ‘Brazilian keratin type’ hair-straightening products contain ‘unacceptably high and dangerous’ concentrations of formaldehyde, reports [s]Health-e[/s]. The maximum safe concentration of formaldehyde set by the [b]US Cosmetic Ingredient Review Expert Panel[/b] and by most countries, including SA, is less than 0.2%. Of the seven commercial BKT brands studied, six had formaldehyde levels that ranged from 0.96% to 1.4%. That is five times higher than the legal limit and these included five brands that were labelled ‘formaldehyde-free’. The authors say that the study is limited, as they have not been able to include all internationally available BKT products. ‘However, the false labelling of products as formaldehyde-free exposes unsuspecting consumers and hairdressers to adverse effects,’ they said.
[link url=http://www.health-e.org.za/2014/04/22/hair-straightening-products-pose-serious-health-risk-uct-study]Full Health-e report[/link]
[link url=http://www.jaad.org/article/S0190-9622(13)01135-3/abstract]Journal of the American Association of Dermatologists abstract[/link]