While all those benefits sound irresistible, there’s a pretty major catch, and that lies in formaldehyde.

Formaldehyde is a notorious but effective chemical present in most keratin treatments.

She added, “It basically coats your hair cuticle like armor.”

woman getting her hair straightened

Essentially, the solution enables your hair to derive the benefits and the formaldehyde.

It’s no surprise that formaldehyde is released in many hair straightening and smoothening solutions.

National Toxicology Program (NTP).

woman getting her hair washed

According toCancer.org, there have been multiple studies conducted to test the effect of formaldehyde in animals and humans.

Human studies have been primarily conducted on people who faced prolonged exposure to formaldehyde at their workplace.

Somestudieshave found a link between formaldehyde exposure and cancer of the nasopharynx.

woman choosing haircare products

Should you go for formaldehyde-free treatments instead?

You’ll instead find formaldehyde-releasing chemicals like methylene glycol, methanal, methanediol, and formalin.