Hairdressing Hazards: A Cut Above the Rest!
Ah, the glamorous world of hairdressing! Where dreams are woven like a fresh balayage and break-ups are soothed with a well-placed fringe. But ladies and gents, as you flip through Instagram seeing those perfect locks, let me throw some rather unglamorous news your way. Apparently, being a hairdresser is akin to playing Russian roulette with chemicals—but instead of bullets, it’s hair products! Yes, it seems our beloved greeters at the beauty salon are encountering more than just split ends—like eczema, allergies, and even asthma attacks. Who knew looking fabulous could be so hazardous? It’s like a silent operation with no safety gear… just what every hairstylist dreams of, right?
Let’s chat about Georgie, shall we? At just 32, she should be in her prime—styling hair while sipping cappuccinos, not on the sidelines checking her eczema flare-up like a contestant in a very unfortunate beauty pageant. “My little finger was as big as my thumb!” she tells us. Well, that’s one way to get a thumbs-up for dedication to your craft!”
The French National Food Safety Agency (ANSES) recently dropped a bombshell on the hair future: “Brazilian straightening products? Nah, we don’t like ‘em!” Those slippery products filled with glyoxylic acid have been linked to four cases of acute renal failure. And we thought the worst thing a hairdresser could face was a customer who couldn’t decide between “sun-kissed” and “chestnut.” Turns out, they might just need a whole new set of products before they find themselves coloring their own hair grey!
Eczema, Allergies, and the Perils of Protecting that Blow-Dry
Now, one might say, “C’mon, it can’t be that bad!” but Nadia Nikolova-Pavageau, a medical advisor in occupational health, is here to pop that bubble. She notes that allergens are lurking where you least expect them—like in hair coloring, marking the main source of skin allergies for the brave souls wielding scissors. It’s almost like hairdressing is the least glamorous war zone, with skin problems, breathing difficulties, even fertility disorders causing havoc. And those symptoms? You could have a dermatology textbook just from listening to their ailments!
But not every stylist is out there fighting eczema battles. Enter Eugénie. In her 10-year career, she claims she hasn’t had skin problems—yet she chuckles that a colleague had to quit due to allergic reactions. “When bleach falls on your hands, it burns!” No kidding, Eugénie! Sounds like the first rule of hairdressing: do the trendy color, don’t be the trendy color!
You’ve got to admire their resilience, though. Like the prodigious comedians I emulate, they learn to laugh through the pain—or rather, the burns! At least Eugénie acknowledges that strides are being made, products have improved—presumably, now they only want to peel the skin off a little instead of completely charbroiling it.
So, Where’s the Hair-raising Safety Precautions?
Now the health professionals are in the mix, suggesting that it’d be ideal to substitute these hazardous potions for less dangerous ones and desperately need ventilated venues for all those products swirling around. Because nothing screams “professional hair salon” like a setup that looks like a science lab explosion instead of a serene retreat for self-care.
Erwan Poivet, scientific advisor at the Federation of Beauty Companies, nails it as well: “These products are not meant for the general public!” You hear that? It’s like doing cocktail mixing but with no recipes and 50% chance of ending up a health hazard yourself!
Oh, but it gets better! Hairdressers often cite plant-based alternatives—so green and earthy. How refreshing! Because if you have to burn your lungs to make a living, it might as well be done with a hint of eucalyptus!
Trading Tresses for New Paths
And now there’s Georgie, once a proud hair hairstylist now painfully contemplating life outside the salon. “I don’t know how to do anything else,” she lamented. That’s a punchy comeback line if I ever heard one! It’s like being told you can’t sing in the shower. A girl’s got to find a new melody!
As Georgie lists her salon for sale, we’re reminded just how frayed lives can become when the very products that are meant to beautify can turn toxic. Perhaps it’s time to appreciate those hairdressers who are routinely putting themselves on the line just to make you look good with a signature “do.”
So, the next time you’re in that lavish salon getting pampered, take a moment. Look around, and maybe wash your hair with gratitude—because behind every great head of hair, there’s a stylist standing there with a heavy heart and a throat full of burning color. Now, that’s a real hair-raising adventure!
In March 2024, the sentence falls for Georgie, 32 years old. She is allergic to several products present in the cosmetics she uses in her hairdressing salon and must stop working. “I had eczema, when I was in crisis my little finger was as big as my thumb,” she tells Le Parisien, “then I had rhinoconjunctivitis, like asthma, it lasted four , five days… It was violent. »
Even if it was not hairdressers who were affected, ANSES (National Food Safety Agency) issued an alert on Wednesday highlighting the toxic components handled by this profession on a daily basis. It now advises against the use of so-called “Brazilian straightening” products containing glyoxylic acid, a “potentially toxic” cosmetic ingredient. At the origin of this alert, “four cases of acute renal failure” linked to this acid were identified.
This health risk remains to be confirmed. But others are already known. “Handling shampoos, coloring, bleaching, perming or straightening products exposes hairdressing professionals to dangerous chemical substances,” writes the INRS (National Institute for Research and Security).
Eczema, allergies and respiratory problems
We thus find “allergens, particularly in hair coloring, it is the main source of skin allergies among hairdressers”, gives the example of the Parisian Nadia Nikolova-Pavageau, medical advisor in occupational health at the toxicological risks center of the ‘INRS. “Skin problems (redness, itching, burning, dryness, eczema, psoriasis, etc.), breathing difficulties (asthma, cough, wheezing), poisoning” or even “fertility disorders” are also listed as occupational illnesses by Health Insurance.
The hairdressing sector is “the most concerned among women for occupational allergic contact dermatitis”, explains Nadia Nikolova-Pavageau, i.e. eczema, often on the hands, but also for irritant contact dermatitis which can be caused by the use of many irritants, such as shampoos. Used several times a day every day, they are one of the irritants. “For occupational asthma it is second after the cleaning sector,” adds the medical advisor.
Respiratory problems can come from sprays and volatile powders used in certain procedures. PPD (p-phenylenediamine), a powder present in colorings, is regularly cited. It is “known to be very allergenic”, confirms to the Parisian Erwan Poivet, scientific advisor within the Federation of Beauty Companies (Febea), “but it is identified, its risk is taken into account in terms of precautions, with for example the demand for the use of gloves and masks,” he says. “If the professional has an allergic reaction to one product, others are offered,” he adds. Hairdressers regularly cite plant-based alternatives.
Georgie says she has changed her cosmetics several times, without success. Her last year of work “the coloring powder systematically burned my throat, I opened the jar and it was instant,” she says.
“When it falls on your hands it burns”
Obviously not all hairdressers are affected by these pathologies. Eugénie, 31 years old and a hairdresser for 10 years, declares that she does not present the various disorders listed above. But “I had a colleague who had to stop doing hairdressing, she became allergic” to cosmetic products.
If Eugénie protects herself when handling dangerous products, she emphasizes that there are bound to be accidents, for example with “bleaching products. When it falls on your hands it burns. We learned to live with it, it’s part of the job. » She highlights in passing the progress made in recent years on the substances used, “much less strong than before”.
To prevent toxicological risks, “ideally we should favor substitution with less dangerous products, have ventilated premises and a room dedicated to the preparation of products with general ventilation and localized collection”, declares Nadia Nikolova-Pavageau. To limit exposure, it is also good to “organize the work, so that it is not always the same person who does the shampoos, for example. »
Erwan Poivet places emphasis on the training of professionals in the sector in the handling of dangerous products, these are “not products intended for the general public, you must be trained regularly, know the usual precautions such as wearing mask or gloves,” he points out. And in case of poisoning or allergies, contact a health professional. “There they will be able to study the case, find out if it is linked to one product or another.”
Unfortunately, like Georgie, some hairdressers can no longer use cosmetic products and are forced to leave the profession. Today the thirty-year-old says she is feeling better, even if she still feels like she has breathing problems. Unfortunately, she now has to rethink her life. “I don’t know how to do anything else, it’s very hard,” she confides. Last week, she put her business up for sale and is now looking for a new path.
