Hair Care Product Use Among Women Of Color

Endocrine disruptor chemicals (EDC) disrupt reproductive development and increase cancer risk through their ability to have a direct, indirect, or interactive action on cellular processes within the mammary tissues. EDCs may have the most influence during periods of dynamic structural and functional changes in the mammary glands, such as during pregnancy and the postpartum windows. Hair care products (HCPs) are a class of personal care products (PCPs) that contain EDCs; there are stark differences in HCP use by race. Differences in hair texture may explain differences in use. Nevertheless, of major concern, clinical, epidemiological, and laboratory studies have suggested HCPs are associated with earlier pubertal events, where the timing of pubertal maturation is an established risk factor for breast cancer (BC) risk. Additional studies have shown that compared to infrequent users, women classified as moderate or frequent users of PCPs had a 10-15% higher BC risk, dark hair dye is associated with a 52-72% increased BC risk, a history of chemical relaxer or straightener use is associated with a 64-74% increase in BC risk, and in 454 Mexican women (233 cases) urinary concentrations of monoethyl phthalate (MEP) were positively associated with BC, with stronger associations observed for pre-menopausal women. Evidence is emerging on EDC exposures across the pregnancy/postpartum periods. This is of importance because while pregnancy is associated with a long-term reduced risk of BC, it also confers an increased risk of BC for at least a decade after birth. EDC exposure during this period of increased risk could promote 'activation' effects for BC following pregnancy. In pregnant women, PCP use is correlated with higher concentrations of urinary phthalates, urinary metabolite concentrations vary by PCP type, and urinary metabolite concentrations differ by sociodemographic factors and across racial and ethnic populations.

Unfortunately, few studies examine HCP-associated EDC exposure across the pregnancy/postpartum periods and no study has implemented a behavioral intervention. An intervention during pregnancy on EDC exposures and HCPs could have intergenerational health implications.

An intervention to reduce phthalate exposures during the pregnancy/postpartum window would have both fetal/early and maternal health implications. First, behavioral changes during pregnancy could mitigate EDC exposures that exert in utero effects that may program long term risk for hormone-related disease for the child. Second, behavioral changes could reduce 'activation' effects for BC following pregnancy. Pregnant women are primed to change behaviors for their babies' health.

Therefore, the investigators propose an educational intervention for prenatal women of color in Northern Manhattan on HCPs and EDC exposures with an assessment of behavioral change via self-report and urinary phthalate concentrations.