It’s taken me a long time to be comfortable in my own skin—or rather, my own hair. I have naturally curly hair that is anything but subtle. My curls are wild and often untamable, which was not the vibe while navigating high school. I began straightening my hair almost daily starting when I was 14, so the idea of a smoothing treatment that would make my hair straight for 3+ months was super appealing!

When I turned 23, I booked a Brazilian Blowout. I hadn’t researched it much, but I knew it had more plant based components than a Keratin treatment, so I decided to go for it! In a Brazilian Blowout, you start by washing the hair and then applying the formula. Then, the hair is blow-dried straight and then straightened. All was going well up until this point, but then my stylist told me I should use the a towel to cover my eyes because they might burn when the hair is straightened. HOLY COW she was not kidding! When she straightened the formula into my hair, it created a vapor in the air that burned my eyes so bad that they watered uncontrollably. The rest of the appointment went fine and I loved the results, which lasted about 4 months.

I thought I had found my solution to frizz for life and planned to get another treatment within the next year. Not long after, I recommended the Brazilian Blowout to my boss, but she said she wouldn’t get one because of the formaldehyde it contained…Wait, WHAT? There’s no way it could have formaldehyde—it was supposed to be more natural than other options! I immediately looked it up and sure enough: Formaldehyde. You know, the stuff they embalm DEAD BODIES in. The stuff that is a known carcinogen. Yeah, that formaldehyde.

It didn’t take long for me to connect the dots. That part where the vapor made my eyes burn? That was formaldehyde gas filling the air! Thinking back, I wasn’t told to wear protective eyewear, but fortunately I had a towel to cover my face. But what about my stylist, who’s a good friend of mine? She had to stand and inhale the gas during the whole treatment! How is this FDA approved?! All they’re required to do is slap a warning on the bottle—which the consumer doesn’t see—and they’re in the clear.

Well, after the FDA failed to act on bringing light to this issue, the State of California intervened. In 2012, the manufacturer was ordered to pay a settlement of $300,000 for false marketing and failure to disclose ingredients, and was told to meet California air quality standards. After failure to comply, a court order was put out that required the product to be reformulated. The Brazilian Blowout now contains between 3% to 7% liquid formaldehyde (formalin), whereas the original formula contained up to 11%. Still, YIKES.

After learning of this, there’s no way that I’ll opt for another Brazilian Blowout—even though I loved my results. I’m so glad I learned about the issues with straightening treatments before I continued; It was no coincidence that I had that chat that day about the presence of formaldehyde.

I’ve come so far in the last 2 years when it comes to living clean and doing my own research. It’s not enough to trust an FDA approval or the “greenwashing” of “natural ingredients” listed on a product.

If you’ve ever considered a straightening treatment, I would recommend that you do your own research! And if you work in a salon, I would highlyyyy recommend you look into the ingredients in the Brazilian Blowout and decide if the risk is worth offering it as your service. At the very least, invest in a mask and some protective eyewear!