Study finds many “clean” products for textured hair still risky ^{CEFR B1}

A study, to appear in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, examined products marketed as "clean" for textured hair. The research team was led by the University of California, Santa Barbara Environmental Studies Program and Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, together with Black Women for Wellness and Silent Spring Institute. The researchers used a Target store in South Los Angeles as a case study and web-scraped ingredient lists for 150 products labeled "Target Clean". They assessed ingredients using the Environmental Working Group Skin Deep database.

The authors found that voluntary retailer efforts cannot fully replace federal regulation. Lead author Joaquín Madrid Larrañaga said the team expected safer results but the majority of products were still rated as moderate hazards. The analysis also found that 70% of products listed "fragrance" or "parfum", a label that can mask undisclosed chemicals.

Only 41% of products matched entries in the EWG database, and of those more than 90% had hazard scores in the moderate range (scores 3–6). Labeling was inconsistent: 14.6% of products contained sulfates, yet only about half carried the retailer's "Formulated without Sulfates" badge, leaving over one-third inconsistently labeled. Coauthor Lariah Edwards warned that Black women may still be exposed to harmful chemicals, and advocates called for enforceable regulation. The authors recommend avoiding fragrances/parfum, sulfates, parabens and phthalates until federal standards exist.