- Joined
- Jul 28, 2003
This is rather alarming:
Long-Time User of Hair Dye? Scary News
Women who have used hair dye for 24 years or more have a higher risk of developing a cancer called non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Reuters reports of new research from the Yale University School of Medicine. But do note this: There was no increased risk of cancer for women who started using hair dye in 1980 or later, since it was in that year that many carcinogens were removed from some hair dye formulas.
The results of the Yale study of 1,300 women--600 who had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, or NHL, and 700 who were healthy--do answer one question that has stumped doctors: Why has there been a rise in the number of lymphatic system cancer cases since the mid-1970s? The researchers determined that women who started dying their hair before 1980 were one-third more likely to develop NHL. In addition, those who used the darkest dyes for more than 25 years were twice as likely to develop the cancer, reports Reuters of the study. Even so, it's important to note that anyone's risk of developing NHL is very low--even when the risk is doubled, according to cancer experts. About 54,000 Americans will develop NHL this year, and 19,000 will die from it.
Study leader Yawei Zhang wrote in the American Journal of Epidemiology that women who have been dying their hair since 1980 were not at an increased risk of cancer. "Hair coloring products have undergone tremendous change over the last 20 years," he wrote. "Since 1980, many carcinogens have been removed from some formulas, which vary depending on whether the dye is permanent, semi-permanent, darker, or lighter." Another researcher who participated in the study, Yawei Zhang, had a slightly different take: "This could reflect the change in hair dye formula contents over the past two decades or indicate that recent users are still in their induction and latent period."
I may just grow gray gracefully!!!!
Long-Time User of Hair Dye? Scary News
Women who have used hair dye for 24 years or more have a higher risk of developing a cancer called non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, Reuters reports of new research from the Yale University School of Medicine. But do note this: There was no increased risk of cancer for women who started using hair dye in 1980 or later, since it was in that year that many carcinogens were removed from some hair dye formulas.
The results of the Yale study of 1,300 women--600 who had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, or NHL, and 700 who were healthy--do answer one question that has stumped doctors: Why has there been a rise in the number of lymphatic system cancer cases since the mid-1970s? The researchers determined that women who started dying their hair before 1980 were one-third more likely to develop NHL. In addition, those who used the darkest dyes for more than 25 years were twice as likely to develop the cancer, reports Reuters of the study. Even so, it's important to note that anyone's risk of developing NHL is very low--even when the risk is doubled, according to cancer experts. About 54,000 Americans will develop NHL this year, and 19,000 will die from it.
Study leader Yawei Zhang wrote in the American Journal of Epidemiology that women who have been dying their hair since 1980 were not at an increased risk of cancer. "Hair coloring products have undergone tremendous change over the last 20 years," he wrote. "Since 1980, many carcinogens have been removed from some formulas, which vary depending on whether the dye is permanent, semi-permanent, darker, or lighter." Another researcher who participated in the study, Yawei Zhang, had a slightly different take: "This could reflect the change in hair dye formula contents over the past two decades or indicate that recent users are still in their induction and latent period."
I may just grow gray gracefully!!!!
I'm one of those that has that ugly gray stuff.
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