Dangerous Ingredients Of Hair Dyes
In the interest of full disclosure: yes, I’m dyeing my hair. Actually, I’m doing it for many years now. Because of my experience with hair dyeing, I became somewhat sloppy. Sure enough, arrogance doesn’t go unpunished.
I knew – of course! – that the popular drugstore hair dyes contain many potentially harmful ingredients. However, I didn’t experience any disturbing side effects. As it turns out, whether or not you’ll develop adverse side effects depends on a specific manufacturer’s formula. (Just because you didn’t experience nasty problems with one hair color is no guarantee that you won’t experience them with another color or another manufacturer’s hair dye.)
I didn’t realize also that sticking with the manufacturer’s recommended duration the hair dye stays on the scalp is of utmost importance. Here’s the deal: when you first start dyeing your hair, you’re very cautious and particular about following directions. Chances are, like me, you too follow them to the letter.
In my case, I found a decently-priced color I liked and a brand I liked. Then, I’ve gotten into the habit of dyeing my hair with the same product every 5-6 weeks. Everything was just fine for some 8 years. I have naturally dense, thick, and healthy hair. The only thing that changed was its color, just like I wanted.
Then, all of a sudden, the trusted by me manufacturer stopped making my favorite hair dye color. I was forced to look for a similar color made by other manufacturers.
After years of dyeing my hair, I assumed that all hair dyes are equal. I tried one brand which is generally considered good and safe. It burned my hair and made it frizzy. I turned to a more expensive brand and it just so happened that it was on sale. Budget-savvy, I purchased four packs and saved a small fortune!
I considered myself too experienced to bother with the recommended allergy test and went right ahead. The results were very nice. Satisfied, I continued for several months that is until I noticed to my horror a shiny, receding hairline forming!
That’s when I panicked and did belated research. I learned that not all hair dye is created equal. Don’t assume that just because you’re very familiar with one hair dye, you know all hair dyes. I learned the hard way that I don’t!
Dangerous Ingredients Of Hair Dyes
Many of us know of the dangers associated with a long-term use of hair dyes containing ammonia and peroxide. (Common ingredients in permanent hair dyes that make hair lighter.)
Personally, I never heard of Paraphenylenediamine (PPD), often used in dyes that make hair darker. My first and most favorite hair dye did NOT contain it. The latest one that I purchased in bulk and used for some 6 months, did.
According to Poison.org:
“One of the main culprits is the primary intermediate PPD. Contact with skin can cause irritation including redness, sores, itching, and burning. Occasionally, allergic reactions occur and involve swelling of the face and neck that causes difficulty breathing.”
That’s what I found on the Belgravia Centre website:
“Certain chemicals – such as PPD, or paraphenylenediamine, a common ingredient in many darker hair dyes – can provoke the body’s immune system, causing an itchy and sore scalp, neck, shoulders, eyelids and ears. Irritated follicles may shed their hair prematurely and lead to patches of baldness, while itching can also cause hairs to break off. As allergies are cumulative (i.e. they get worse with each reaction) it is important that you stop using a product that causes a reaction immediately, and do not use it again.”
Other hair dye ingredients can be scary, too. Use of commercial hair dyes in general is somewhat of a gamble.
Forhers.com states:
“According to one study of over 200 participants, 110 suffered adverse reactions and 33.6 percent of those experienced hair loss.”
Hair dye ingredients can do plenty of damage. Coloring duration is a separate story.
Apparently my first hair dye was very tolerant and I never experienced any problems when I went a few minutes over the recommended duration. Not all hair dyes are as tolerant. Leaving the color on for mere minutes longer than recommended can have catastrophic consequences.
One thing is being careless and leaving the color on for 10 additional minutes. But there is another. Be mindful WHERE you start applying color. Why? Because that’s the spot that is exposed to the hair dye the longest! (Yes, I’m telling you that this is the spot where you’ll lose your hair, first!)
I don’t know how skilled and fast is your hair color application. Mine takes some 15 minutes; once the color is applied, I start timing it. If you look at the process from this perspective… The recommended time is usually 30 minutes which means that the area I color first is exposed to the hair dye for 45 minutes! Talk about chemical burns.
To quote Belgravia Centre, again:
“Hair loss from severe burns, where the skin takes on a shiny, bald appearance once the scalp has healed, is generally permanent. This is known as cicatricial alopecia – also known as scarring alopecia – and, due to the destruction of the hair follicles in these instances, treatment is not possible. In some circumstances surgical hair restoration may be an option but this is very much decided on a case-by-case basis by specialist surgeons.”
Long story short, no girl will be kept from coloring her hair but knowing what I know now, I highly recommend that you explore NATURAL hair dyes. We don’t sacrifice all the time and effort to be beautiful only to become crippled by an unsafe hair dye. Don’t wait for your bald patch to appear (yours could be in the back where you’re unlikely to notice it!), do some research on natural hair dyes, ASAP.
The DIY really natural hair dyes don’t produce as striking or as lasting results as those from a drugstore. (I’m talking here about henna or lemon juice.)
The commercially available natural hair dyes contain LESS harmful chemicals, but they’re not entirely chemicals-free which is why, before you start shopping for an alternative, safer hair dye prepare a list of the unsavory chemicals you want to avoid.
The two lists that follow are quoted from My Hair Doctor:
Alternative names for PPD:
PPD or PPDA
Phenylenediamine base
p-Phenylenediamine
4-Phenylenediamine
1,4-Phenylenediamine
4-Benzenediamine
1,4-Benzenediamine
para-Diaminobenzene (p-Diaminobenzene)
para-Aminoaniline (p-Aminoaniline)
Orsin™
Rodol™
Ursol™
Just a few (not all!) other substances that may cause bad reaction (some of them can harm your general health as well):
Azo dye
Para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA)
Ammonia
Para-toluenediamine (PTD)
Quaternium-15 (causes contact dermatitis)
Phthalates
Then, make sure that those listed above are NOT on the ingredients list of the NATURAL hair dye you’re considering. Good luck!
Photo by Taylor Smith on Unsplash
