Talk:Relaxer

message: "The choice of a Black person to relax his or her hair should be looked at no differently than that of a white person choosing to perm straight hair or straighten curly hair. It is simply a matter of style and preference." - This is not a neutral point of view.  A NPOV would not include the word "should".
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New Relaxer provisionally patented
A new relaxer was resently provisionally patented using an improvement on the old slaked lime and petroleum jelly recipe.
The new relaxer uses Petroleum Jelly, Glycerine, slaked lime, olive oil and a Manganese complex called CVD-45 said to bethe component responsible for color stability during relaxing.
Jan Coenraad van Duyker
I removed the following paragraph from the article:
"One of the reasons that African Americans use relaxers is to make their hair more manageable. African American hair is thick, and the purpose of a relaxer is to straighten and relax the hair. The relaxer is applied to the roots and as the hair grows out, the relaxer grows out (much like with hair dye), and the hair begins to return to its original state. Relaxers should be reapplied about every eight weeks. They can be done at home or professionally."
The position is that "perms" (as I would call them most naturally) makes hair more manageable. I disagree because what is meant by manageability is subjective. What is manageable for one person may be considered entirely unmanageble (and undesireable) for another. E.g., if you would like to have your hair braided, it might be disadvantageous to get a perm.
But I do agree that if your desired outcome is straighter hair, then a perm is makes it more manageable for that particular purpose - but not more manageable in general. It's an important distinction (to me). E.g., why on earth would a person want straight hair? Why would they want curly hair?
This is related to the "African Americans, Racism, and Relaxers" section that I've added to the article. One cannot reasonably argue that racism has nothing to do with the African American Perm Craze (TM).
I would not remove the section again if it was reworded in such a way as to indicate that straighter hair does not necessarily mean "unmanageable". I happen to LOVE my curly, thick, so-called unmanageable hair!!!!!!
--Lloydsmith2 21:48, 5 December 2005 (UTC)
replies: text: Looks good now, I removed the NPOV tag and made a few minor edits and wikifications.--Cuchullain 23:08, 3 January 2006 (UTC)

message: I think the term African-American is being misused and overused in this article. Not every black person is from America, just like not every white person is from Europe. This article sounds very Americacentric, remember this an international encyclopedia. Any thoughts?  SynthesiseD 21:52, 17 October 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I agree, but I don't think I'm qualified to revise this article. -- Craigtalbert 22:33, 17 October 2006 (UTC)

text: I also agree, although I seem to be a bit late here...plenty of African people live in places other than America, a pretty reasonable example being Africa :P and seeing as I have family in Africa, I think it's only valid that the term African-American in this article be removed and replaced with something a little more valid on a global scale.Dragonkillernz 15:21, 1 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Wikipedia goes with Black people, and I suggest we do the same, or perhaps even "people of African descent" would be better. "African-American" obviously can't be used as most black people are not African-American. It's not a very useful term when it comes to race anyway. Any objections? Martin 16:57, 21 May 2007 (UTC)

text: I am surprised no one has caught this comment or responded since 2007. Wow. Anyways, to address some of your concerns. 1. Relaxing hair is NOT much more troublesome than perming straight hair. It takes approximately 25 minutes to apply/let the perm do its work from start to finish (and as little as 16 minutes depending on hair type) and all you have to do is mix the cream with the activator, set it to your hair, and wait. Easy peasy. 2. It isn't expensive. As a matter of fact home kits can be found at the Family Dollar or other cheap stores for as little as $4.00 a box depending on brand. I can even go to a hair salon and get mine done for $20.00. Of course this price varies among area, but for the most part they are relatively cheap. 3. It CAN get wet. I don't know where this myth comes from. I mean, it HAS to get wet. We DO wash our hair, and since they are permanent they do NOT come out as soon as the water hits it. We also have to wash the relaxer cream out when we get perms or else it can cause damage to our scalp. 4. Some of them are damaging depending on how you put them in, your hair type, and the condition your hair is in, but aren't all chemicals somewhat damaging to hair regardless of hair type? This can include hair coloring, bleaching, and perms for White women. If you take care of your hair, the results are very pleasing. Obviously you weren't lying when you said some people know very little about the issue. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Sweet Morena (talk • contribs) 23:36, 15 March 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Racial Terminology 

message: The second part of this article contains absolutely no references, and merely expresses the thought, written like facts, of an individual. It doesn't belong in this article, which is about hair relaxers, not a history/ethnic fact page! It's also entirely centred around issues in the United States. It also should NOT say anything about it being popular with anyone. This article seems to be written by someone who literally WANTS to include 'racial' issues with a beauty product! Plus there are are many European-descendants who use hair relaxers. This article must be written in a scientific point of view, since it is about a certain hair treatment. It only seems to glorify racism. Also, this 'race' phenomenon is something stuck in your head that purely a misconception. Stop judging people on what 'race' they are! All I know is, any Human that has curly hair would use relaxers if they want to.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 210.49.201.32 (talk) 09:06, 27 December 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  The Second Section 

message: The first paragraph under the heading "Alkaline and Lye relaxers" reads:
"
when Garrett Augustus Morgan, an African-American , observed that it is possible to change the basic structure of the hair shaft when certain chemicals penetrate the cortical layer. Hair relaxing products often require washing and combing with soap which had been made with excess lye.
"
The group of words before the first period is not a sentence. The sentence that follows seems jarringly unrelated to the group of words.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 99.67.90.220 (talk) 23:02, 16 February 2011 (UTC)
thread_title:  Alkaline and Lye relaxers 

message: Determining the presence and amount of hair damage before chemical services such as color, perms and relaxers can help keep hair looking healthy. Knowing the condition of your hair before major services helps determine the type and strength of chemicals needed to perform the service safely. The presence of extreme damage predicts an undesirable outcome. You can keep your hair healthy and avoid further damage by abstaining from chemical services when extreme damage is present. Being aware of the condition of your hair will also help you make decisions regarding product selection and maintenance issues such as haircuts and conditioning treatments.
Step 1
Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/269287-how-to-test-scalp-hair-for-damage/#ixzz2Q0n1Zp7s
here are some ways to help prevent hair or scalp damage
-weave
-parabenic product(parabens can give cancer)  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Madaline9 (talk • contribs) 23:32, 9 April 2013 (UTC)
thread_title:  Scalp damage