New Study Finds Cancer-Causing Chemicals in Beauty Products Used by Women of Color
It shouldn’t take a science degree to stay safe. But a new study shows that Women of Color are being exposed daily to cancer-causing chemicals in personal care products. And most of them probably don’t even know it.
Women of Color are using products laced with formaldehyde—yes, the embalming chemical
A new study published May 7 in Environmental Science & Technology Letters found that more than half of Black and Latina women surveyed in Los Angeles used beauty products that contain formaldehyde or formaldehyde-releasing preservatives. According to NPR, participants logged all personal-care products used over the course of a week—soaps, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, hair relaxers, skin lighteners, and even eyelash glue.
Dr. Robin Dodson of the Silent Spring Institute, the study’s lead author, said in a press release: “These chemicals are in products we use all the time, all over our bodies. Repeated exposures like these can add up and cause serious harm.”
The beauty standards harming Women of Color
The findings aren’t just alarming—they point to a long-standing public health issue rooted in systemic racism. As People Magazine reported, previous research has shown that Women of Color are disproportionately exposed to harmful ingredients in products marketed specifically to them.
“Hair discrimination and racialized beauty standards often drive the use of hair-straightening products to better ensure social and economic opportunity,” the researchers wrote. These standards pressure Black and Latina women to conform to Eurocentric beauty norms. Pushing them toward chemical-laden routines just to be seen as “professional” or “put together.”
These products aren’t just about straightening hair
According to Everyday Health, the study revealed that these formaldehyde-based preservatives weren’t just in hair relaxers. You can also find them in skincare, body soaps, lotions, and leave-in conditioners. In fact, 47% of skincare products and 58% of haircare products used by participants contained DMDM hydantoin—a formaldehyde-releasing chemical.
As Dr. Sharon Horesh Bergquist, a professor at Emory University, told Everyday Health, “While a single exposure may pose minimal risk, repeated or layered exposure from multiple products increases the potential health concern.”
Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen banned elsewhere
Let’s be clear: formaldehyde is a known human carcinogen. The European Union has banned it as a cosmetic ingredient. In fact, the FDA has flagged it for causing rashes, asthma, allergic reactions, and potentially reproductive harm. Despite this, there’s still no national ban on its use in the U.S.
And here’s the kicker: formaldehyde-releasing chemicals are often disguised under hard-to-pronounce names like DMDM hydantoin or quaternium-15, making it almost impossible for average consumers to avoid them. “We shouldn’t have to be chemists to figure out what kinds of products will make us sick,” said Janette Robinson Flint, executive director of Black Women for Wellness, in a statement via NPR.
The pressure to conform is costing Women of Color their health
According to NPR, the average participant in the study used 17 different personal-care products per day. This reflects the immense pressure Women of Color face to look a certain way just to be accepted—in professional settings, in social spaces, and even in their own communities. “Beauty norms that focus on white presentation definitely are resulting in people using products that can be harmful to their health,” said Dr. Tracey Woodruff from UCSF.
And while some states like California have begun regulating formaldehyde in cosmetics, researchers say that isn’t enough. A federal ban is long overdue. The FDA was supposed to take action years ago, but has yet to follow through.
