{"id":288158,"date":"2026-02-17T10:49:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T10:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/288158\/"},"modified":"2026-02-17T10:49:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T10:49:12","slug":"scientists-find-cancer-linked-chemicals-in-nearly-all-hair-extensions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/288158\/","title":{"rendered":"Scientists Find Cancer Linked Chemicals In Nearly All Hair Extensions"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Blonde <\/a>Credit: Wikimedia Commons<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll find glossy packets of hair extensions in most beauty supply stores. They promise a new look for a few dollars, but behind the glitter, scientists have found a cocktail of industrial chemicals linked to cancer, hormone disruption, and reproductive harm.<\/p>\n

A new study in Environment & Health <\/a>analyzed 43 hair-extension products\u2014synthetic braiding hair, human hair, and plant-fiber options such as banana-based extensions. Nearly all contained at least one chemical flagged as hazardous, the researchers report.<\/p>\n

A Chemical Dragnet<\/p>\n

Millions of people use hair extensions, but some groups tend to use t hem more than others. More than 70% of Black women in the United States use hair extensions at least once a year, compared with less than 10% of other groups, according to the study. Sometimes, they use them for weeks at a time.<\/p>\n

Unlike cosmetics you rinse away, hair extensions linger. They\u2019re pressed to the scalp, warmed by styling tools, and carried through daily routines. Whatever chemicals they contain, they can pass to the skin quite easily.<\/p>\n

The study used a broad \u201clet\u2019s see what\u2019s there\u201d approach. Instead of searching for specific ingredients, the team ran a non-targeted screen\u2014an analytical sweep that can detect many chemicals at once.<\/p>\n

The sweep caught 933 different chemical signatures. While many remain unidentified because they don\u2019t even exist in reference libraries yet, the ones we can name are worrying. The team identified 48 chemicals listed on major hazard registries. In fact, 91% of the tested samples contained at least one substance found on California\u2019s Proposition 65 list of known carcinogens and reproductive toxins.<\/p>\n

From Boat Hulls to Braids<\/p>\n

The scale of the contamination is what really shocked the researchers. In Kanekalon\u2014a ubiquitous synthetic fiber\u2014chlorine made up nearly a quarter of the material\u2019s weight.<\/p>\n

In about 10% of the samples\u2014mostly those that failed to disclose their fiber type\u2014tin levels exceeded 0.4% by weight. \u201cWe were shocked,\u201d lead author Elissia T. Franklin told Gizmodo<\/a>. We are essentially putting chemicals designed for aquatic industrial use directly onto human scalps.<\/p>\n

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And then there were the organotins: tin-based compounds used in industry, including to stabilize certain plastics. The study found organotins in nearly 10% of samples\u2014specifically, in four products whose labels did not disclose the fiber type. In those samples, total tin reached levels suggesting tin content above 0.4% by weight.<\/p>\n

All in all, hair extensions seem to be a cocktail of chemicals.<\/p>\n

Can We Fix It?<\/p>\n

\"A <\/a>Image in Creative Commons.<\/p>\n

The study doesn\u2019t definitively prove that these chemicals are leaching into our bloodstreams at toxic levels yet. However, the circumstantial evidence is mounting. OB-GYNs have long noted that conditions like fibroids, which respond to estrogen, are disproportionately prevalent in Black women. This study provides a potential \u201cmissing link\u201d between external products and internal health.<\/p>\n

Also, the work adds detail to a pattern that has been building. A 2022 study<\/a> found heavy metals in synthetic hair, and a Consumer Reports<\/a> investigation in 2025 found volatile organic chemicals<\/a> in braiding hair.<\/p>\n

The organotin result may be especially thorny. The European Union caps certain dibutyltin compounds in consumer articles at 0.1% tin by weight, and the study reports that some extensions surpassed that level.<\/p>\n

And if you think a quick DIY fix will save you, think again. Many consumers try to \u201cstrip\u201d the chemicals using an apple cider vinegar rinse. The researchers tried a similar acid soak in the lab and found it barely made a dent in the tin levels.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, the study points to a practical theme that shows up again and again in modern chemical safety: disclosure. Products that didn\u2019t name their fiber type carried some of the heaviest hazardous load.<\/p>\n

Change, the authors argue, is unlikely to come from individual choices alone. Meaningful protection would require clearer laws, routine safety screening, and industry accountability\u2014steps that could make beauty products safer long before they reach a salon chair.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Credit: Wikimedia Commons You\u2019ll find glossy packets of hair extensions in most beauty supply stores. They promise a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":288159,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[62465,160207,73316,160208,122954,134,111,139,69,160209,160210,160211],"class_list":{"0":"post-288158","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-beauty-products","9":"tag-black-womens-health","10":"tag-consumer-safety","11":"tag-endocrine-disruptors","12":"tag-hair-extensions","13":"tag-health","14":"tag-new-zealand","15":"tag-newzealand","16":"tag-nz","17":"tag-organotins","18":"tag-public-health-research","19":"tag-toxic-chemicals"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=288158"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288158\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/288159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=288158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=288158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=288158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}