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Women who regularly use permanent hair dye may be putting themselves
at increased risk of bladder cancer.
This is one of the largest and most comprehensive studies ever conducted
on the issue. Investigators analyzed
897 cases of bladder cancer where information about hair dye
use was available, and compared these patients with a similar number of
adults who did not use permanent hair dye.
The investigators found that women who used permanent
hair dye at least once a month were twice
as likely as women who did not use permanent hair dye to develop
bladder cancer. They took cigarette smoking -- a known risk factor for bladder
cancer -- into consideration in their calculations.
Those who reported regular use of the hair dye for at least 15
years were more than three
times as likely to develop bladder cancer as non-dye users.
All of the shades use essentially the same chemicals, but there's quite
a lot more of the chemicals in dark brown and black than there are in
blonde.
International Journal of Cancer February
2001
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