Research is raising important questions about chemicals in the hair and beauty products African women use every day. In Liberia, that conversation has not yet begun. It should.
By Ernree Bee Neeplo, contributing writer
Think about the last thing you put on your hair. Maybe it was a relaxer, a rinse, or a dye. Maybe it was the glue holding your lace front in place, the bonding agent on your weave, the synthetic hair you have been wearing in braids for the past three weeks, or a commercial scalp oil you picked up at the market. Whatever it was, I want to ask you one simple question: do you know what is actually in it? Not the brand name. Not the scent. The ingredients. What is in the formula sitting on your scalp right now, being absorbed through your skin, entering your body.
If you do not know, you are not alone. Many women across Africa, including here in Liberia, have never been given that information in a form they can use. Not because they are careless. But because nobody told them it mattered, and nobody connected what is in the product to what may be happening inside the body. That is the gap this article is trying to close.
This article is not an invitation to throw away your products or abandon your personal style. It is not a campaign against any brand or any choice. It is written because a growing body of scientific evidence now exists on what certain hair and beauty products may be doing to women’s bodies, and Liberian women deserve to have access to that information just as much as anyone else.
| This is not a natural hair sermon. This is a public health conversation that belongs to every woman, whether she relaxes, dyes, braids, glues, weaves, or goes fully natural. |
In 2022, researchers from the United States National Institutes of Health published findings from the Sister Study, one of the largest and most respected women’s health studies in the world, covering more than 33,000 participants. The study found that women who frequently used chemical hair straightening products had a significantly higher risk of developing uterine cancer than women who did not. Other studies from Harvard University, Boston University, and the National Cancer Institute have explored possible associations between certain hair and beauty products and conditions including breast cancer, ovarian cancer, and uterine fibroids. Researchers are careful to note that studies continue, and mechanisms are still being investigated. But the volume and consistency of findings have been significant enough to prompt serious regulatory attention worldwide.
On hair dyes specifically, the evidence has been building for even longer. The International Agency for Research on Cancer, IARC, which is the cancer research arm of the World Health Organization, has formally concluded that occupational exposure to hair dye chemicals, meaning the exposure experienced by hairdressers and salon workers who handle these products daily, is probably carcinogenic to humans. A meta-analysis drawing on 42 separate studies found that the longer a person works as a hairdresser, the higher their likelihood of developing bladder cancer. For consumers who use dyes regularly at home or in salons, studies have found associations with elevated risks of breast and uterine cancer as well.
| For many Liberian women, conversations about fibroids, infertility, hormonal disorders, and unexplained hair loss are deeply personal. These experiences affect families, finances, confidence, relationships, and quality of life. While no single factor explains these conditions, emerging research suggests that the products women use regularly deserve greater attention than they have traditionally received. When a woman is diagnosed with a hormonal condition, her doctor will ask about her diet, her family history, her lifestyle, and other known risk factors. Rarely will anyone ask about her haircare history. Yet research now suggests that certain chemicals in hair and beauty products may interact with the very hormonal systems involved in some of these conditions. That question deserves a place in the broader public health and clinical conversation. |
The chemicals drawing the most concern are not confined to any one product type. Formaldehyde, classified as a Group 1 human carcinogen by IARC, has been identified in some hair-smoothing treatments and certain dyes. It does not always appear on the label by that name. It can be listed as methylene glycol, formalin, or simply as part of a fragrance blend. When heat is applied during styling, it can be released as a gas and inhaled, by the woman in the chair and the stylist working above her. Parabens, widely used as preservatives in hair creams, conditioners, and commercial scalp oils, belong to a class of chemicals studied for their potential to interfere with normal hormonal processes in the body. Phthalates, found in many synthetic fragrances, are under similar scrutiny.
And the evidence on synthetic hair extensions, a product worn by millions of African women, is relatively new and attracting increasing scientific attention. A peer-reviewed study published in February 2026 in the journal Environment and Health analyzed 43 samples of synthetic and human hair extensions and found that at least one substance linked to cancer or reproductive harm was present in 91% of the products tested. Researchers identified 169 distinct chemicals across the samples, including flame retardants, hormone-disrupting organotins, and PFAS, the so-called forever chemicals linked to immune suppression and cancer. These are products worn directly against the scalp and neck, sometimes for weeks at a time. The fumes released when extensions are heated during styling represent an additional exposure pathway, for the wearer and for the stylist.
None of this means that every product is unsafe or that every woman who uses these products will develop a health condition. Science does not work in straight lines, and I will not be reckless with the anxiety of women who are already navigating difficult health realities. What it does mean is that ingredient transparency, consumer awareness, and evidence-based regulation are not luxury concerns. They are basic public health requirements.
Around the world, that recognition is translating into action. The European Union has strengthened restrictions on endocrine-disrupting chemicals in cosmetics. Brazil and Canada have taken measures regarding formaldehyde in certain hair applications. The United States Food and Drug Administration has proposed a ban on formaldehyde in hair-smoothing treatments. Meanwhile, as these markets have tightened, sales of chemical relaxers in parts of Africa have increased. As regulatory discussions continue elsewhere, there is an opportunity for African countries, including Liberia, to strengthen consumer awareness and ensure that consumers have access to the same information increasingly available in other markets.
| We are not asking for special treatment. We are asking for the same information and the same level of consumer protection that women in other parts of the world are beginning to receive. Access to information is not a luxury. It is a cornerstone of informed consumer choice and public health. |
The Liberia Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority (LMHRA), the Ministry of Health, and the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) all play important roles in protecting public health and strengthening consumer awareness in Liberia.
This article is not a criticism of those institutions. It is an invitation to a conversation that is already happening globally, and that Liberia has both the right and the opportunity to join proactively. Greater ingredient disclosure requirements, public awareness efforts, support for local research, and dialogue among regulators, health professionals, researchers, cosmetic brands, manufacturers, importers, retailers, hair professionals, and consumers would all represent meaningful steps forward.
What Women Can Do Now
While that systemic work progresses, there are things every woman can do right now. Looking for products with clearly disclosed simple ingredient lists is a good starting point. Many women are choosing plant-based oils and butters, such as shea, coconut, palm kernel, jojoba, and castor oil, as part of their hair care routines precisely because their ingredients are easy to identify and understand. Asking salon professionals about the products they use, and requesting ingredient information where possible, is a reasonable and informed practice. Supporting businesses that prioritize transparency, responsible formulation, ingredient disclosure, and the use of plant-based and naturally derived ingredients can also encourage greater innovation and accountability within Liberia’s growing beauty industry.
Through the Know What You Crown initiative, supported by Elysium Naturals, I am working to promote ingredient literacy and consumer awareness through partnerships with women, hair professionals, cosmetic brands, product manufacturers, retailers, regulators, and public health stakeholders. Through our allied organization Formidable Initiatives for Women and Girls, we are preparing a formal policy brief to be submitted to the LMHRA, the Ministry of Health, and NPHIL. We see this as a collaborative process. The goal is to ensure that Liberia participates actively and purposefully in a global conversation that directly affects the health of our women and girls.
Women have every right to choose the hairstyles and products that best reflect who they are. Meaningful choice, however, depends on access to information. That information exists. It is available in research databases, scientific journals, and regulatory documents around the world. It has not yet made its way to Monrovia in a form that reaches the everyday consumer.
Beauty and health have never been separate conversations. The evidence emerging at their intersection deserves our attention, our research, and our action. That conversation should begin now.
Knowledge before products. Always.
About the Author
Ernree Bee Neeplo is a Senior Gender and Development Specialist with academic training in Public Health and International Development and more than 15 years of professional experience in Liberia. She is the Founder of Formidable Initiatives for Women and Girls (FIWG), a Liberian organization focused on adolescent girls’ development, women’s empowerment, sexual and reproductive health and rights, and gender-based violence prevention. She is also the Founder of Elysium Naturals and the author of Secrets to Consistent Hair Growth and Healthy African Hair.
For media inquiries or to engage with the Know What You Crown initiative, contact Elysium Naturals (+231888646493, ernree@ernreebneeplo.com).
Key Sources Referenced
Sister Study, US National Institutes of Health (2022) – uterine cancer and chemical hair straighteners
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), WHO (2010) – occupational exposure as a hairdresser or barber classified as probably carcinogenic to humans (Group 2A); IARC Monographs Volume 99
Silent Spring Institute, Environment & Health (February 2026) – chemical composition of 43 hair extension products
Environmental Working Group – analysis of hair dye and personal care product safety ratings
National Toxicology Program (2021) – chemicals in hair dyes classified as reasonably anticipated to be human carcinogens
