“The actual fact is that, because it’s not regulated, we do not know what’s precisely in braiding hair,” says Los Angeles-based dermatologist Zoë Indigo Smith, MD. “However what we do know is that one of many attainable causes of scalp irritation is the coating.” Smith notes that when the hair is heated, that coating may also launch different chemical compounds, which might be trigger for extra concern.
What are some attainable dangers of sporting artificial braiding hair?
The primary level of concern individuals expertise with artificial hair is the scalp irritation—and that irritation’s unwanted side effects—it may possibly trigger. Dr. Smith says that an allergic response (and the ensuing irritation) brought on by any of the artificial braiding hair’s substances may result in extra unwanted side effects, most notably hair loss. “Your hair is like grass, and if the soil is just not proper and it isn’t getting the vitamins it wants due to irritation, then that grass goes to bounce,” says Dr. Smith. The grass, on this case, might be your hair: Dr. Smith says that irritation, if left unchecked, may contribute to a type of alopecia.
Individuals have additionally speculated that artificial braiding hair might be linked to most cancers resulting from using vinyl chloride within the chemical coating of the hair. One study reveals that poisonous VOCs (unstable natural compounds) are emitted when artificial hair is singed or heated at temperatures of 250°C and above. Inhaling these VOCs may theoretically create elevated well being dangers for each the braider and the braidee, although extra analysis must be finished for any dangers of this magnitude to be said definitively.
Tips on how to correctly clear artificial braiding earlier than putting in
Correctly cleaning your braiding hair is one of the best ways to forestall scalp irritation when utilizing artificial hair. All you want is an apple cider vinegar rinse, which Chicago-based hair stylist Brenda Johnson (no relation to Cynthia) says is a mix that is two-thirds water and one-third ACV. You may need to combine this up in a big bin or sink that is large enough for all of your hair to slot in, then soak the artificial braiding hair within the rinse for as much as an hour.
This works higher than utilizing different cleaning merchandise, like shampoo, as a result of uncooked ACV (even when diluted with water) is an acetic acid, which might neutralize the alkaline properties the hair has as a result of chemical coating, making it extra appropriate along with your scalp’s pure pH. “The coating on braiding hair, like Kanekelon hair, has a excessive pH,” Cynthia, the beauty chemist, explains. Apple cider vinegar brings the pH of artificial hair (often between 9 and 11 after it has been processed) all the way down to the vary of pure human hair and pores and skin (between 4.5 and 5.5).
