How beauty products are harming black women’s fertility

A 2020 study by the Havard School of Research found that 50% of hair products marketed to black women contain endocrine-disrupting chemicals (parabens and phthalates) — compared to 7% of those marketed to white women. Endocrine disrupters have a negative effect on fertility in women and girls and increase the chance of getting fibroids or, worse, cancer.

Human bodies contain eight endocrine glands that secrete the hormones our bodies need to work optimally. This is called our endocrine system. Children are most vulnerable to the disruption of this system, especially before the age of 10, because their bodies are not developed enough to cope. As a result, the earlier children use cosmetic products, the higher their chances of encountering infertility or breast cancer later in life.

“Most beauty products marketed to black girls and women contain some of the worst ingredients I have ever seen. I think they should be outlawed,” says Dr Yvonne Burkart, a toxicologist who has studied male and female reproduction, infertility and cancer as a laboratory researcher. She has also worked as a senior toxicologist in the flavour and fragrance industry. “Anything with a lingering scent contains phthalates,” she said. Phthalates are chemical compounds also known as plasticisers. They make a scent linger and plastic more durable.

There does not seem to be any valid reason to include them, especially because we know harmless substitutes are available. So, what is this? Environmental injustice? Capitalist greed? Negligence? Or just plain racism? Why are products targeted at lower-income communities or black people so heavily fragranced with synthetics compared with?

When an ingredient list includes “fragrance” or “parfum”, by law the manufacturer does not have to disclose the frangrance’s ingredients. This is considered private intellectual property. A pity, considering that “fragrance” can consist of up to 63 ingredients — none of which we are entitled to know and some of which contain chemicals of concern.

Burkart was 32 when she was told by her doctor that she could not fall pregnant and should consider in vitro fertilisation (IVF). Once the shock of the news had faded a little, she remembered, “I studied reproductive toxicity as an undergrad. There must be an environmental component to this. Could there be chemicals in my own environment that are negatively impacting my fertility?”

One of her studies focused on the effects of common toxic environmental chemicals and their effects on the male and female reproductive systems. “What was missing from my view at the time were these low-dose, chronic exposures over a lifetime to toxins and chemicals in products found in our homes and in our outside world that nobody has really connected to some of these disease states.”

In her research, she had to relearn what she had taken to be hard scientific facts, such as “the dose makes the poison”. Meaning the more you are exposed to the chemical, the more severe the outcome. It turns out, this isn’t always the case. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals at very low levels have higher activity than they do at higher levels. The rule, here, applies in reverse.

Slowly, Burkart started making some changes to her diet — cooking all her meals from scratch and even growing some of her own food. There was some improvement when she would test her body for toxins. But not much. One by one, she stopped using her makeup, perfume, creams, deodorant, changed her hair care and even oral care products. This is when the real change came. The tests proved it, but she also felt that she had more energy, better mental clarity and focus, fewer headaches, more vitality and her menstrual cycle returned. Nine months after she consciously started eliminating toxins from her home, she fell pregnant.

Unfortunately, it is not just cosmetics that are of concern. Household cleaning products and just about anything you burn inside your home, including some scented candles, wood, some incense sticks and your regular cooking oil, and poor ventilation all contribute to the toxins disrupting your endocrine system. Environmental toxins are listed as one of the main reasons male fertility in the US has declined by more than 50% since the 1970s according to the US’s National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The situation is dire, but information is power. Consider waiting as long as possible before introducing your children to cosmetics; when you do, go fragrance-free and get familiar with the names of harmful chemicals to identify them on every ingredient list. Specialised retailers, like Faithful to Nature and Wellness Warehouse, have a selection of safer products. As for your favourite perfume, you’re probably better off spraying it on your clothes than your skin, and wear it occasionally rather than daily.