The Ed.
Well-Known Member
The Brazilian Blowout controversy is well-known and has been widely reported on for a couple of years. I have been trawling the internet and found myself bombarded with varied and conflicting messages. In an attempt to get to the truth I have spoken to hair stylists, those who have had the treatment done and Brazilian Blowout UK Ltd. themselves.
If you believe all the media hype, the treatment is nothing less than a death sentence. This is probably an exaggeration. Hair stylists that I spoke to seem to think its OK as long as its done properly by someone trained to do it. Unfortunately, theres no way of knowing whether thats the case. Diren Chetty, Operations Manager for Brazilian Blowout UK Ltd., said that while they offer training to all stylists, theres no way of knowing whether everyone performing the treatment has had the training. Countries such as Canada, Australia, Germany, France and Ireland have previously banned the use of the product and I believe that many still think that this is the case. Chetty tells me that this is not true. According to him, there are no longer any countries or any US states that ban this product.
So what was all the hoo-ha about? Initially, Brazilian Blowout (very naughtily) labeled their products as Formaldehyde Free. As it turns out, this wasnt exactly true. After many a stylist complained of nausea and headaches and several clients had very bad reactions to the products (famously, Mary Lousie Parker from hit TV show Weeds suffered hair loss), Brazilian Beauty had to fess up and admit, that actually, yes, they did use formaldehyde in the product.
Obviously, this didnt go down too well within the industry. It was banned in a variety of countries and received a lot of bad press. Finally, in November 2011 the case went to court and while Brazilian Blowout were forced to clearly state on their labels that the product contained formaldehyde, they didnt actually have to remove it. So, in summary, its ok for them to expose clients and stylists to formaldehyde as long as they are being honest about it. The court case also ruled that Brazilian Blowout had to create information leaflets about the product and its risks and that they had to pay out $35 to affected clients for each treatment up to three, and affected stylists were entitled to $75 compensation for each bottle they had bought.
Now, this has caused a lot of chatter within the industry, mostly from those calling for the product to be banned. But, just to play devils advocate for a moment, isnt it true that we know the dangers of many, many things and we still continue to do them? Whether its drinking, or smoking, or injecting chemicals, or undergoing totally unnecessary but major cosmetic surgery many people are still prepared to take the risks. You may well question the morality of a company putting a potentially dangerous product out there, but just like cigarette companies and plastic surgeons, they wouldnt be doing it if we werent buying it, right?
Until then geek on!
The Ed.
If you believe all the media hype, the treatment is nothing less than a death sentence. This is probably an exaggeration. Hair stylists that I spoke to seem to think its OK as long as its done properly by someone trained to do it. Unfortunately, theres no way of knowing whether thats the case. Diren Chetty, Operations Manager for Brazilian Blowout UK Ltd., said that while they offer training to all stylists, theres no way of knowing whether everyone performing the treatment has had the training. Countries such as Canada, Australia, Germany, France and Ireland have previously banned the use of the product and I believe that many still think that this is the case. Chetty tells me that this is not true. According to him, there are no longer any countries or any US states that ban this product.
So what was all the hoo-ha about? Initially, Brazilian Blowout (very naughtily) labeled their products as Formaldehyde Free. As it turns out, this wasnt exactly true. After many a stylist complained of nausea and headaches and several clients had very bad reactions to the products (famously, Mary Lousie Parker from hit TV show Weeds suffered hair loss), Brazilian Beauty had to fess up and admit, that actually, yes, they did use formaldehyde in the product.
Obviously, this didnt go down too well within the industry. It was banned in a variety of countries and received a lot of bad press. Finally, in November 2011 the case went to court and while Brazilian Blowout were forced to clearly state on their labels that the product contained formaldehyde, they didnt actually have to remove it. So, in summary, its ok for them to expose clients and stylists to formaldehyde as long as they are being honest about it. The court case also ruled that Brazilian Blowout had to create information leaflets about the product and its risks and that they had to pay out $35 to affected clients for each treatment up to three, and affected stylists were entitled to $75 compensation for each bottle they had bought.
Now, this has caused a lot of chatter within the industry, mostly from those calling for the product to be banned. But, just to play devils advocate for a moment, isnt it true that we know the dangers of many, many things and we still continue to do them? Whether its drinking, or smoking, or injecting chemicals, or undergoing totally unnecessary but major cosmetic surgery many people are still prepared to take the risks. You may well question the morality of a company putting a potentially dangerous product out there, but just like cigarette companies and plastic surgeons, they wouldnt be doing it if we werent buying it, right?
Until then geek on!
The Ed.
