Curly naturals love their hair gel. A great styling gel tames edges and gives your hair a polished and sleek final look. Traditionally, however, gels contain alcohols and other dying ingredients that can lead to breakage and split ends. Enter the era of natural and supposed organic gels and the Eco styler brand turned out to be one of them.
In their lineup of more than 5 gel variations, there can be found a controversial active ingredient known as triethanolamine, TEA or TEOA.
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So what is Triethanolamine (TEA)?
Triethanolamine is an ingredient that is used to stabilize hair product, neutralize fatty acids and thicken formulas. Research has shown that triethanolamine causes allergic reactions in some cases – irritation to skin and eyes and contact dermatitis. Additionally, when mixed with certain ingredients, triethanolamine can form cancer-causing agents.
To avoid deceptive ingredients lists, the best option would be tocook up a concoction in your kitchen, however, time, inclination or patience and education on the subject are all hot commodities.
It is extremely unlikely that small amounts of triethanolamine in a product can cause cancer but this is what we know now. We don’t know what the studies will show in future. With that being said, the natural hair community has been in a bit of an uproar and are furiously scrambling for worthy replacements. Here are a few that you might want to check out.
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1. TGIN Curl Bomb Moisturizing Styling Gel
This great styler does an incredible job of defining the curl while keeping the hair moisturized since its infused with essential oils like olive and exotic fruit. It can be found at most drug stores.
Ingredients: Water, PVP/VA COPLOYMER, POLYSORBATE 20, OLEA EUROPAEA (OLIVE) FRUIT OIL, GLYCERIN, CARBOMER, HYDROLYZED WHEAT PROTEIN, AMINOMETHYL PROPANOL, SODIUM HYDROXYMETHYLGLYCINATE, TETRASODIUM EDTA, FRAGRANCE (PARFUM).
2. Alikay Naturals Aloe Berry Styling Gel
Not only does this (mostly) natural styler smell amazing but it alsodoes its job. Perfect for 4c hair, the gel has firm styling properties while avoiding that pesky hard finish that most holding gels leave you with.
Ingredients: Aloe Barbadensis (Aloe Vera), Cocos Nucifera (Coconut Oil), Prunus Amygdalus (Almond Oil), Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Tocopherol (Vitamin E), Fragrance (Parfum), Color additives, Botanical Blend Ingredients
3. Wonder Curl Get Set Hair Jelly
Enriched with aloe vera, pro vitamin B5, and other amazing ingredients, this jelly sculpts your coils while leaving them with a bouncy, air-light finish.
Ingredients: Water, Glycerin, Polyquaternium-7, Carbomer, Panthenol, Hamamelis Virginiana (Witch Hazel) Water Alcohol, Aminomethyl Propanol, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Tetrasodium EDTA, Fragrance, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin
4. Aloe Vera Gel
The most natural alternative thus far, aloe vera gel has tons of hair benefits; perhaps the most important--moisture. It may not provide the most defining hold for frizzy curls, but accompanied with another styler, you’re bound to achieve the perfect braid-out.
Ingredients: Certified organic whole leaf aloe vera gel (99.5%). Less than 1% of the following natural, food grade sources: Citric acid (oxidation inhibitor), potassium sorbate (mold inhibitor).
Jasmine Browley holds an MA in journalism from Columbia College Chicago, and has contributed to Ebony, Jet and MADE Magazine among others. So, clearly, she knows some stuff. Follow her digital journey @JasmineBrowley.
