Ise Logun ise [Work is the antidote for poverty] ... Mura si se re, ore mi [Work hard and work smart, my friend] Ise la fi ndeni giga [Hard and smart work brings success] Bi a ko ba reni fehin ti [When there is no one to rely on] Bi ole la ri [Its like we are lazy] Bi a ko ba reni gbekele, [When there is no one to trust] A te ra mo se ni. [We focus more on our work] Iya re le lowo lowoh [Your mother might be rich] Baba re le lesin lekan [Your father might own a thousand and one horses] Ti o ba gbojule won [If you rely on them] O te tan ni mo so fun o [In truth, you might be on sinking ground]
Apa lara igupa ni ye kan [families are like the arm, while extended family are like the elbow] B'aiye ba fe o loni [If you are loved by the world today] Ti o ba lowo lowo, won a tun fe o lola [If you are still rich, they will love you tomorrow as well] Abi ko wa nipo atata [If you have an esteemed position] Aiye a ye o si terin terin [You will be honored with "fake"laughter] Je ki o deni ti ra ngo [If you unfortunately loose your money or position] Ko ri bi won ti nyin mu si o [They'll turn their back on you]
Iya mbe fomo ti ko gbon [There is suffering for the foolish child] Ekun mbe fomo ti nsare kiri [and there is sorrow for the child that have no plan or vision] Mafowuro sere ore mi [Don't waste your formative years, my friend] Mura sise ojo nlo. [work hard and plan well now, because time waits for no one]
A new study in the American Journal of Epidemiology has linked hair relaxers to uterine fibroids, as well as early puberty in young girls.
Scientists followed more than 23,000 pre-menopausal Black American women from 1997 to 2009 and found that the two- to three-times higher rate of fibroids among black women may be linked to chemical exposure through scalp lesions and burns resulting from relaxers.
Women who got their first menstrual period before the age of 10 were also more likely to have uterine fibroids, and early menstruation may result from hair products black girls are using, according to a separate study published in the Annals of Epidemiology last summer.
Three hundred African American, African Caribbean, Hispanic, and White women in New York City were studied. The women’s first menstrual period varied anywhere from age 8 to age 19, but African Americans, who were more likely to use straightening and relaxers hair oils, also reached menarche earlier than other racial/ethnic groups.
While so far, there is only an association rather than a cause and effect relationship between relaxers, fibroid tumors, and puberty, many experts have been quick to point out that the hair care industry isn’t regulated by the FDA, meaning that there’s no definite way to fully know just how harmful standard Black hair care products really are.
Fibroid Facts
Fibroids are tumors that grow in the uterus. They are benign, which means they are not cancerous, and are made up of muscle fibers. Fibroids can be as small as a pea and can grow as large as a melon. It is estimated that 20-50% of women have, or will have, fibroids at some time in their lifetime.
If you were considering ditching your relaxer to improve the health of your hair, now there might be good cause to avoid them for your body's health, too. A new study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology reports that the use of hair relaxers may increase the risk of uterine fibroids.
This new research reveals that in a sample of 23,000 pre-menopausal Black American women between 1997 and 2009, Black women had reportedly two or three times higher rate of uterine fibroids. In the case of young Black girls, their research shows that there is an association between African-Americans girls who use straightening and relaxer hair oils and the onset of their menstrual cycle. This is earlier than other racial groups including African Caribbean, Hispanic, and White women. The Mayo Clinic defines uterine fibroids as noncancerous growths of the uterus that often appear during your childbearing years.
Researchers fear that Black women are being exposed to chemicals that gain access into the body through lesions on the scalp by burn from hair relaxers.
Will you be thinking twice before your next relaxer?
Fox 29's Joyce Evans also reports that the hair industry is not regulated by the FDA. This means there is no way of knowing just how dangerous chemical relaxers are.
"AFRICA'S GREAT OPPORTUNITY IS ACTUALLY THE PEOPLE. NOT THE COOPER; NOT THE OIL; NOT THE GOLD. THOSE LEADERS THAT ARE STILL CAUGHT IN THIS BINGE FOR EXTRACTIVES, IS A MAJOR SOURCE OF FRUSTRATION AND GREAT CONCERN FOR ME"- Oby Ezekwesili January 2012.
Presider: Jendayi Frazer, Adjunct Senior Fellow for Africa Studies, Council on Foreign Relations
January 23, 2012
