You may have heard about this new fad called the “Brazilian blowout.” Celebrities have been raving about this treatment, which costs up to $500 a session, but government reports and warnings are creating quite the controversy. Unlike the Japanese thermal straightening treatment, which uses a high PH solutions to break down the bonds that give wavy and curly hair their “backbones,” the Brazilian blowout takes a seemingly gentler approach. By soaking the hair with a keratin and oils to form a hard outer shell around the cuticle, it helps hold the strands into their “new” shape.

Sounds good huh? Not so fast….