Popular beauty accessory found to have dozens of toxic chemicals linked to cancer, hormone issues

Some problems won’t wash right outta your hair.

New analysis from leading breast cancer researchers reveals just how toxic certain popular haircare products can be — testing positive for dozens of hazardous, cancer-causing chemicals. 

Published in the American Chemical Society journal “Environment and Health,” the study says the items fall under a “largely unregulated category of beauty products” and were found to have toxic ingredients — some that are “major hazards.”

Along with her team, lead author and breast cancer research scientist at the Silent Spring Institute Elissia Franklin tested 43 hair extension products — some made of synthetic fibers and others natural — for a vast array of chemical compounds, including some that are frequently overlooked in this category of products.

What they found was hair-raising.

They detected nearly 170 different chemicals including dozens that are linked to cancer, hormone disruption, developmental problems and effects on the immune system, according to the study.

Among the many chemicals found were flame retardants, phthalates, pesticides, styrene, tetrachloroethane and organotins, commonly used as a heat stabilizer (and a known skin irritant) — none of which belong near our scalps.

The only two samples that were labeled “non-toxic” or “toxic-free” were also the only samples that did not contain toxic chemicals. 

Almost 50 of the chemicals identified in the hair extensions are listed as “major hazards,” and 12 of those also appear under California’s Proposition 65 — enacted to protect drinking water from toxic chemical contamination — because of their known links to cancer, birth defects and other reproductive dangers.

Whether they’re made of synthetic fibers or bio-based materials like human hair, most extensions are treated with chemicals to ensure that they’re flame resistant, antimicrobial or waterproof.

But few companies actually disclose the chemicals used to achieve these properties, Franklin said, “leaving consumers in the dark about the health risks from prolonged wear.” There are concerns about consumers inhaling these chemicals when they’re released by heat styling, as well as chemicals that sit directly on the scalp and neck.

Researchers affiliated with this study are calling for tighter regulations on the manufacturing of hair extensions, as well as clear consumer warnings about the risks they carry.

“These findings make clear that stronger oversight is urgently needed to protect consumers and push companies to invest in making safer products,” Franklin said.

Franklin’s research echoes other recent findings from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which reported in 2024 that Black women collectively spend $7.5 billion on beauty products annually and are consequently exposed “to an average of 168 unique chemicals every day.” The total worth of the beauty industry in the US hovers around $100 billion.

According to Franklin’s study, “more than 70% of Black women report wearing hair extensions at least once in the past year, compared with less than 10% of women from other racial and ethnic groups,” citing cultural and personal choice, as well as convenience, as reasons for their popularity.

X Braithwaite, lead environmental justice organizer at the Clean Water Fund, has written about the impact of endocrine-disrupting chemicals on human health, and the reality that products marketed to Black women tend to have more of them.

In response to these disturbing statistics, Equity Wellness Co, an initiative founded by attorney and policy analyst Marcha Chaudry, established a beauty certification rubric that involves strict ingredient verification, claim validation and safety and transparency requirements. 

Similarly, the Nontoxic Black Beauty Justice Project has compiled a database of Black-owned beauty products that are safe to use.

There has also been a wave of national and state policy efforts to address toxicity in personal care products. 

In 2023, Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois introduced the Safer Beauty Bill Package, which is meant to address “gaping holes in cosmetic safety by banning the worst chemicals; requiring fragrance disclosure; protecting women of color and salon workers; and creating supply chain transparency.” 

That bill package builds upon the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act (MoCRA) passed in 2022, which, in addition to other things, expanded FDA oversight to include the regulation of the cosmetics industry.

And state lawmakers in both New York and New Jersey have proposed legislation to boost transparency in synthetic hair products like braids and extensions. 

For Franklin, these legislative steps are well overdue. “This is an industry that has long overlooked the health of Black women, who should not have to choose between cultural expression, convenience and their health.”